#elf boy Leo

[redgoldsparks]

March Reading and Reviews by Maia Kobabe

I post my reviews throughout the month on Storygraph and Goodreads, and do roundups here and on patreon. Reviews below the cut.

Before I get to the reviews this month, I have to bring up the fact that the current fascist, book-hating administration is trying to defund/destroy the The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). The IMLS is an independent federal agency that provides grants to libraries and museums across the country. According to the American Library Association, the IMLS provides "the majority of federal library funds." The IMLS says it awarded $266 million in grants and research funding to cultural institutions last year. This money goes to help staff, fund maintenance, and create new programs. And as of March 31, every single member of its approximately 70 person staff has been put on administrative leave. This could have devastating effects to libraries across the country. (source)

Please! Write or call your state governor and state reps about this. Here's the sample email I sent, which I modified from a template sent out by Authors Against Book Bans:

I am writing to express my support for federal museum and library funding, and to urge you to stand against President Trump's recent Executive Order against the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS).

As I'm sure you know, the IMLS provides important support for local libraries and museums across the state and the country. IMLS makes grants that bridge funding gaps in local libraries and museums allowing them to better serve our communities by targeting each community's unique needs. These grants improve internet access to rural areas, support tribal libraries, ensure that libraries offer interlibrary loans, fund language programs, subsidize programs for veterans, businesses, and entrepreneurs, and so much more.

As an author, libraries directly support my career. As a reader, I check out over 100 books a year from the library for reading and research, way more than I could ever afford to buy or have space to store. Libraries personally benefit my life in so many ways. Please stand against cuts to the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and ensure museums and libraries can continue to benefit communities across the United States.

Frieren: Beyond Journey's End vol 1 by Kanehito Yamada, art by Tsukasa Abe, translated by Misa

I had already watched a few episodes of the anime, so the set up of this story was familiar to me. Frieren is an elf mage who traveled with the adventuring band who killed the demon king decades ago. She has not visibly aged, but her traveling companions are all old men how. 50 years after their big victory, she returns to travel with them again. That's the last time she seems one of them alive. She realizes she had not processed how short human lives are in comparison to her own, and vows to do a better job getting to know the next group of humans whose lives touch her own. This is a contemplative and slow burn story, but with a lot of tenderness. I definitely want to keep reading more of this rambling adventure!

I Think Our Son is Gay vol 1 by Okura translated by Leo McDonagh 

A very gentle slice of life story, told from the POV of a mother of two teen boys. She suspects her older son, in high school, is probably gay and has a crush on one of his classmates. She begins trying to support him in subtle ways and slowly educates herself more about the queer community, while wondering how to share this information with her husband (who is often away on work trips and sees their children less often than she does). The chapters are very short and often silly, giving the book overall a very light tone.

Survival of the Friendliest by Brian Hare and Vanessa Woods read by Rene Ruiz 

The majority of this book outlines some very interesting animal research on the effects of domestication, specifically self-domestication, over time. The Russian "friendly foxes" project, a silver fox breeding program where the only trait selected for was friendliness/openness to humans, is one of the main studies discussed and I enjoyed learning more about it. Over generations, the foxes selected for friendliness started to show surprising physical changes- wider variety of coat colors, curlier tails, smaller teeth, and increased social communication skills. The authors combine this with studies on bonobo monkeys, chimpanzees, dogs, and human fossil skulls, to present an argument that it was friendliness and cooperation, not strength or "fitness", that lead to humans dominance over other early human species such as neanderthals. The last quarter of the book then tries to turn this research into an explanation on how and why humans also dehumanize each other and how in-groups give rise to fascism. I wasn't as sold on the contemporary political theorizing, but I still think this book is worth a read.

Homesick: Stories by Nino Cipri 

This is a WONDERFUL short story collection, nine stories, each with some kind of speculative or fantasy element, and nearly all with a queer or trans main character. The stories gained momentum as they went a long, many of them making me exclaim "how did you think of that?" A few of the longer pieces are particular standouts- "The Shape of My Name", in which a trans man recons with his family's history of time travel; "Presque Vu", in which the inhabitants of a town connect over their shared personal hauntings (the main character coughs up old keys); and "Before We Disperse Like Star Stuff" in which a queer friend group of academics deals with the fall out of a massive archeological discovery, and the way one of them ran away with the story to publish without the other two, leading a breakup and also a Smithsonian documentary. Nino Cipri is on my immediate-read list!

She Loves to Cook and She Loves to Eat vol 5 by Sakaomi Yuzaki translated by Caleb Cook

This serious continues to be SO CHARMING! Nomoto and Kasuga continue to house hunt, but run into difficulties on renting together as a same sex couple. Their friends are there to cheer lead, and offer resources and support. I love these foodie lesbians!

Sea Legs by Jules Bakes and Niki Smith 

Set in 1993, and heavily based on the author's lived experience, this graphic novel follows Janey's very unusual fourth grade year. Her parents own and live on a 40-foot steel sailing ship. They've been mooring in Miami, Florida, and Janey has been attending a regular public school where she has made a best friend, Rae. But Janey's parents want to set to sea again, so Janey and her cat Sassa are off to the Caribbean. There are many wonderful things about sailing- new islands, new food, new views every morning- but it's lonely too. Janey sends letters to Rae but can only receive them when the family stays in a port long enough to get a PO box. She's often bored, doesn't want to do her homework, wishes she had any friends near by. Finally the family's boat, the Merrimaid, stops St Thomas for a while, where her parents get part time jobs. Janey spots a girl only a little older living on another boat in the harbor. Astrid is aloof, challenging, mysterious, and knows a lot of places on the island where kids can get into trouble. Janey is entranced by her, but too young to see the precarious and potentially abusive situation Astrid is living in. This book is BEAUTIFULLY drawn, bright and sharp. I was completely drawn in to Janey's world and the struggles she faces with her parents and her two very different friends, Rae and Astrid. This book brought back how hard it was to maintain a long distance friendship in the 90s, and also pointed out how easy it is for kids without responsible adults in their lives to disappear off the map. It's more challenging and dark than the colorful cover suggests but I HIGHLY recommend it.

I Think Our Son is Gay vol 2 by Okura translated by Leo McDonagh 

This gentle slice of life story continues. Tomoko, mother of two sons, one or both of whom might be queer, borrows a gay manga series to read from a friend and leaves it in the living room for her possibly queer teen to find. She also learns that one of her co-works at work is gay, and open to answering some questions. I really enjoy the slow, realistic journey of a parent figuring out how to be supportive of her kids.

I Think Our Son is Gay vol 3 by Okura translated by Leo McDonagh 

The cast of characters is slowly expanding! A neighbor, who probably has a crush on her gay son Hiroki, starts at Hiroki's high school. I like that we are starting to learn more about Hiroki's younger brother Yuri, who at the moment reads like a very aro-ace character. The main tension point is Tomoko's husband, who has some really basic homophobic beliefs and occasionally says shitty things without seeming to realize they might be hurtful. Tomoko is more patient with him that I would be.

I Think Our Son is Gay vol 4 by Okura translated by Leo McDonagh 

Tomoko is such a wonderful and loving parent to her two probably queer sons. The elder son is dealing with the very normal high school rejection of his crush starting to date someone else, and the younger feels more and more aro-ace and maybe even agender. This is such a gentle, soft parenting story with a lot of sweetness and humor.

Mickey7 by Edward Ashton read by John Pirhalla and Katherine Chin 

The plot of this book is engaging, but the prose is bad. Mickey Barnes is an "expendable" on a terraforming human colony mission on a cold, icy planet. Before the mission left, his entire consciousness was scanned and uploaded to a server, and his biology encoded so the mission can print new versions of him as needed. He is the only member of the roughly 200 person colony who has received this treatment, and it's his duty to do jobs that require a human but will likely get them killed, such as fixing the nuclear reactor, testing out medical procedures, or exploring the system of crevasses and caves below the ice- which happen to be full of insect-like alien species of unknown intelligence levels. This book has some very fun world building and clever twists, but the main character himself is an idiot who regularly makes mistakes that could have been easily avoided with even just a modicum of advanced planning. I would describe the writing as workman-like, just competent enough to get the story told, but often undercutting the emotional impact of the events with quips and fairly shallow character work. I haven't seen the movie but I have a feeling it might be better than the book, a rarity.

I Think Our Son is Gay vol 5 by Okura translated by Leo McDonagh

I'm so glad the main character finally confronted her husband on his careless homophobic remarks! Also I loved the story like of Hiroki getting into a girl idol group named Soup=Soup, what a perfect name for a group. If this is the last book of the series I am satisfied :) If there are more I will read them!

Paladin of Souls by Lois Mcmaster Bujold read by Kate Reading 

Ista is now the Dowager Royina of all Chalion, but she's having trouble shaking the titles she's been known by for most the past two decades: Mad Ista, hysterical Ista, Ista who needs to be watched because she is danger to herself. In her mid-40s, Ista despairs that the family curse, now broken, might define the rest of her life as well. Then inspiration strikes: perhaps a pilgrimage under an assumed name could prove the vehicle to travel, see some more of the world, breath some clearer air, and spend company with some young, adventurous people less defined by their dark pasts. And so Ista takes to the road with just one young lady's maid, two travel wardens, a small trope of soldiers dedicated to the Daughter and one a divine of the Bastard's order as her spiritual advisor. In truth, Ista wants nothing more to do with the gods. But the gods, it seems, are not yet done with her. The simple pilgrimage quickly runs into demons, secret conspiracies, death magic, and a danger that might strike all the way to the heart of the kingdom. And Ista finds that she still has the capacity for both sweetness and steal when the world demands them. This was my second time reading this book, but the first as an adult, and I absolutely LOVED it this go around. The audiobook reader is excellent and I am living for middle-aged fantasy protagonists these days. Give me a character who has seen some shit and nevertheless persists!

Private Rites by Julia Armfield 

Set in a near future world which is drowning under decades of torrential rains, this lyrical, tense family drama follows three estranged sisters after the death of their patriarch father. Isla, the oldest, is a therapist in middle of a divorce; she feels the most pulled to manage the family tragedy of the death, funeral, will, and her more unruly sisters' emotions. Irene, the middle sister, struggles to throw off her teen role as "the angry one", though a very loving partner has softened her rough edges over time. And their half sister, Agnes, younger by 11 years, wants nothing to do with any of this and doesn't feel she owes alliance or family feeling to the others. But all of them are haunted by the ghosts of their dead or missing parents, the abuse and neglect they suffered during a disrupted childhood. Plus there's the matter of the family home to deal with: a cold and luxurious house built on stilts which hold it above the rising water. I enjoyed the lovely prose, the fact that all three sisters are queer, and the exploration of how traumatized people try or fail to build and maintain relationships under many pressures, including climate crisis. The ending is a bit rushed and leaves as many questions open as answered. I might later lower my rating to 3.75, but I rounded up because I enjoyed my book club discussion about it so much.

Penric’s Demon by Lois McMaster Bujold read by Grover Gardener

Lord Penric is on the way to his betrothal to a local cheese maker's daughter when he comes upon an elderly divine of the Bastard's order collapsed on the side of the road, surrounded by her anxious retinue. He stops to offer aid; he doesn't realized that he will end up becoming the host of the centuries old demon she carried. Suddenly the path of his small and certain future is thrown askew, and the road under his feet leads to places he hardly dared imagine. If, that is, he can figure out how to co-exist with a demonic being. I'm excited to start in on this novella series! I'm such a fan of Bujold's writing and very pleased to find many of these books are available in audio.

Coming Back by Jessi Zabarsky

Preet is the most powerful magic user in her island community; her wife Valissa can't use even the most basic powers. But when the island is threatened by a dangerous withering fog, Valissa is the one who volunteers to try and discover its source. In her absence, Preet does a work of magic which is forbidden by the community to do alone; she and her child are exiled from the island and must find a new place to live safely. Will the two women be able to find other another again, and reconcile their believes about tradition, family, and power? This is a very beautiful and ultimately gentle story, mysterious, but compelling.

The Wedding People by Alison Espach read by Helen Laser

Phoebe Stone, a deeply depressed and recently divorced adjunct English professor, checks in at a beautiful hotel by the sea with the intent of killing herself after the end of one decadent night. But she starts to run into roadblocks immediately, including the fact that the entire rest of the hotel is fully booked for a 6 day wedding. Phoebe strikes up a blunt and unlikely friendship with the bride, and after a failed attempt at her own life, lets herself be pulled into the whirlwind of drama in the bridal party. The humor in this book is often dark, but it is also very funny and very human. I was impressed that the author made this kind of wild premise work as well as it did. I became invested in Phoebe's relationships with the bride, the groom, the groom's preteen daughter from a previous relationship, and various other attendees. I loved that part of Phoebe's decision to stick around and see what else life had to offer was breaking out a creative block and a decision to completely change everything about how she'd lived in the previous version of life. Big content warning for suicide; but I think it was handled thoughtfully.

Stories are Weapons: Psychological Warfare and the American Mind by Annalee Newitz read by Alexandra Cohler 

This audiobook was by turns informative, engaging, and deeply upsetting. Newitz spells out the history of the use of propaganda in American warfare, including as far back as the war for independence, and the many wars against Indian nations in the attempt to empty the West of its original people to make the land available for white settlers. During the years around WWII, several key thinkers penned books on physiological operations; some also wrote science fiction under other pen names. The same tactics that fed military thought on propaganda was also used by early advertisers. The book also lays out the Cambridge Analytica project and how clearly it falls into the use of psychological weapons by American corporations against American citizens, and tactic which is supposed to be illegal. I listened to this on audio during the Trans Rights Readaton ] and I'm glad I got to it but some chapters on the 2016 election and current targeting of books, libraries, and queer people were not a fun time to listen to. Newitz ends with a short chapter on "Psy-Ops disarmament" and of course it points to all of the things the current administration is trying to destroy: public educations, a robust library system, trusted new sources, and free movement of citizens across borders.

World Heist by Linnea Sterte 

Two thieves, one a cursed child and the other with the face of a cat, set out to steal things as rare and difficult to obtain as a whole magical pocket realm and the lover of a god. Dreamy, brief, and gorgeously illustrated. Linnea Sterte is doing comics on a whole other level!

Penric and The Shaman by Lois McMaster Bujold read by Grover Gardener

Lord Penric and his demon, Desdemona, have completed their temple training in a record three years and are now in service to the Princess-Archdivine of Martin's Bridge. He spends much of his time translating and copying manuscripts, but every now and then the Princess sends him out on a more interesting errand. So it happens that when a Locator of the Father's Order arrives on the tail of a runaway shaman who murdered a nobleman before fleeing, Penric is set to join the chase. But of course the case is more complicated than it seems, and more than one lost soul hangs in the balance. I had a great time with this second novella in the series; I finished it on a long drive just as the sun was rising over the Richmond bridge and it set a wonderful tone for my whole day.

Penric’s Fox by Lois McMaster Bujold read by Grover Gardener

I am continuing to devour these audiobooks at a ferocious rate! In this third adventure, Penric's vacation is rudely interrupted by a murder; he is pulled into the investigation because of his particular demon-given talents. The victim herself was a temple sorcerer; but who killed her, and why, and where her demon fled after her death are all obscure. This is a clever little bottle episode in the series. I look forward to reading more!

The Deep Dark by Molly Knox Ostertag (re-read for bookclub)

This was exceptional. Mags, a recent high school graduate, lives a carefully controlled life. She cares for her aging grandmother, she works her restaurant shifts, she doesn't party, she doesn't let anyone get too close, even the girl she's sleeping with, who has a boyfriend. Also, she's feeding a dangerous secret, something fanged and strange that lives in the dark. Then Mags' careful routine is disrupted when a friend from childhood, Nessa, turns to the little town outside Joshua Tree where they both grew up. Nessa is being chased by a darkness of her own, and wants answers about a confusing childhood memory. The storytelling, the page layouts, the mixed use of color and black and white, all combined to build such delicious tension in this queer horror tale. Highly recommend!

Added in 2025: I re-read this for book club and on the second pass caught some clever foreshading and paid more attention to the elegant use of visual storytelling tools. This book is worth reading and worth re-reading!

Spent by Alison Bechdel 

I was lucky enough to receive an advanced copy of Bechdel's newest, and most meta, comic. I was genuinely unsure if the premise of this one would work for me, but oh, it did. The main character of this book, Alison, is a cartoonist living in Vermont on a rescue pygmy goat farm. She is the author of a popular memoir about her relationship with her father, a troubled taxidermist who spent time in prison before his death. This book is currently being adapted into a multi-season TV show which is straying increasing farther and farther from reality. Alison's partner, Holly, does the majority of the work around the farm; that is, until one of her wood chopping videos goes viral and she starts dabbling as an influencer instead. Meanwhile, in town, Al and Hol's friends- Sparrow, Stuart, Ginger, and Lois- all live together in an experimental communal home. Yes, that's right, many of the old gang from Dykes to Watch Out For are back, with grayer hair, but just as much wit and spark as ever. JR is a nonbinary, asexual, poly freshman at Oberlin who runs a podcast and participates in campus protests for Gaza. Ginger is still teaching and in a long distance relationship. Sparrow and Stuart are contemplating opening their relationship up. Lois is organizing local events, some of which, unfortunately, turn into covid parties. I have no idea if this book will land for readers who haven't read Dykes to Watch Out For, but hopefully those who have will enjoy this return to the old cast as much as I did. 

All but 5 of the books I read this month were courtesy of the library.

[awriterinthenight]

"Hey, Why Don't You Draw Me"-Leo Valdez

request: @universallyparadisemoon 

words: 725

warnings: none

summary: Leo finds you drawing and asks you to draw him

Pencils, markers, and erasers littered the ground around you, as you drew. Drawing was your hobby and your favorite pastime at Camp Halfblood. Of course you like archery, since you were a child of Apollo, but you enjoyed drawing just as much. Whenever you had to oversee an activity you always picked arts and crafts, since you enjoyed helping others draw and craft.

Not a lot of people knew you were an artist. Only your close siblings and close friends knew about your hobby. You didn't think you were that good, but you still drew anyway. Drawing people was your favorite. You liked to capture the way a person looked, the way they smiled, the imperfections that made their face them, and the idea of capturing someone's likeness in a single piece of art.

"What are you doing there," a voice said, before sitting right next to you under the tree. It was none other than Leo Valdez. He'd been getting closer to you recently, managing to always find you.

"Hey, Leo," you greeted, closing your sketchbook.

Leo's hand flew to reopen your closed sketchbook, "Don't close it, I want to see your drawings."

You shrugged, nervous since no one had seen them before, "Well, they're not the best, but sure," you said, handing him your sketchbook. He took it, his hands grazing yours, making your breath hitch for a moment. Leo slowly looked through each page, carefully taking his time to examine and admire your work.

"Wow, amor," he said, the nickname rolling off of his tongue, making your heart skip a beat, "These are amazing," he complimented, amazed by your work.

"They're not the best," you said, trying to play off his praise about your art, "I just doodle for fun."

"These are way better than anything I've ever drawn," he said, still flipping through the sketchbook before looking up at you, "Hey, why don't you draw me," he offered, handing you your sketchbook back.

You stuttered trying to find your words, "I-I mean I could, but, you'd have to stay here for awhile if that's alright with you," you told him.

He nodded, "Of course, I enjoy your company, amore."

"Alright, then just sit still, this shouldn't take too long," you said, opening your sketchbook to a fresh page. Leo started to make random faces, making you laugh.

"You need to sit still," you reminded him, "And stop making all those weird faces."

"What, you don't like the Leo Valdez Bad Boy Supreme look?" he joked, making a face, and putting his hands on his hips.

You couldn't hold back your laughter, "If I say yes, will you sit still?" you asked him.

"I'll sit still now, amor," he said, sitting up straighter, now looking at you. It wasn't hard for him to focus on looking at you. Especially when he looked at you like you were the only thing that truly mattered to him.

"Good," you muttered, starting to work. You drew the shape of his face, then eyes, then his other features, his hair too, and even his ears that were just a little bit pointed, which gave him an elf-ish look that you thought was adorable.

Leo spent the entire time admiring the way you looked. Your face was focused on the paper, occasionally looking up at him through your lashes. He admired the way you would bite your bottom lip when you concentrated hard on certain parts. Leo just loved that for once all your attention was on him.

"And, done," you said, dragging out the "and", "What do you think?" you asked, anxious to his response, as you handed him the sketchbook.

Leo took one look at it and knew it was the best drawing of him ever, "Wow, this is amazing, amor," he complimented, amazed by the work you had done.

"Really?" you said, smiling at his praise, "I thought this part might've needed more shading and-" you said, but Leo cut you off.

He moved the drawing away from your hand, grabbing your hand, making your breath hitch, "No, it's perfect, amor. I think this is my favorite piece of art ever."

You rolled your eyes at him, "Is it because it's a drawing of you?"

Leo thought about it for a moment, "Well yes," he admitted, "But also because it was drawn by you." 

Current Taglist (ask to be added or removed)

@almost-gabrielle @scarlett-8 @sarahskywalker-amidala @atashiboba @that1deerpersondownstairs @herondale-lightworm @purplerose291 @mitskiswift99 @crumby-child @rafslytherin @shanksvskidd @yerrmar @oceangirl15

[lonelywolfinthemiddleofnowhere]

So I'm reading HOO again

And I decided to share some insights and observations that I gather as I read. First, let's begin with Book 1: The Lost Hero.

Here we meet the new trio. They are new characters, people we have never seen before.

First we have Jason POV: at this point, in chapter I, Jason is mostly confused, doesn't know where he is or where he came from, he doesn't know anyone and there are two kids stating they are his close friends.

My boy Jason is very stunned throughout the whole first chapter, and he kinds of just goes with the flow cause he doesn't really know what else to do.

Interesting observation #1: His description of the other new characters that will eventually become his actual friends, but atp are just strangers (for him)

He describes them very superficially, what gives the impression that Jason isn't much perceptive and doesn't have the inner will to look closer, so he just focus more on the surface stuff of his "so-called" friends.

His first thought about Piper is that she is "cute". Than, after when he really looks at her he thinks she is "seriously pretty", which is very cute and all but that's about it at first. He notices her eyes immediately.

Than we have Leo's description

He basically calls Leo an Latino Santa Claus Elf, with a very troubling kind of smile and very hyper.

Interesting observation #2: Leo reminds us of someone

Leo's description makes us remember another character that has a very troublemaker smirk and is hyper 👀

Leo and Percy are very different, but at the same time very similar. I really wish we got to see them more together, but alas, things happened. Anyway, we will talk about Leo and Percy more eventually, but I just thought it was funny how similar his first appearance is with Percy's first description of himself.

Interesting observation #3: The beginnings of the very messy Jason/Piper relationship

Jason/Piper are very messy throughout the whole series. They share very cute moments, but very awkward and tense moments too. And if you read all TOA books, you already know it doesn't end well for them, but here in HOO, specifically in TLH, they relationship are all over the place and they are emotionally unsettled with each other. Very angsty.

First we have THREE occasions where Jason physically withdraws from Piper.

1 - First Occasion: right after he wakes up:

2 - Second Occasion: when she is worried and tries to take his hand again:

3 - Third Occasion: when she asks his help to free her from Dylan and he kinda of ignores her to talk to Coach Hedge

In Jason's defense, I wouldn't want a stranger in my personal space all he time too. Especially an intimidatingly beautiful girl like Piper.

But for her, it just seems like her boyfriend avoiding physical contact, and that is never flattering, so Piper is quite worried and a bit hurt. And Jason can see he hurt her but he can't actually do anything about it, can he?

They are so messy u guuuuuys. She had inside jokes with illusion!Jason man

For her, he is behaving very differently from the Jason she knows and loves.

Which takes us to...

Interesting observation #4: Jason is not a delinquent.

I don't know how accurate Hera's Mist Version of Jason was to the real thing, but Jason is definitely not a delinquent. He isn't the kind of boy that frequents the Wilderness School. He gets amazed at the way the Coach shouts at the students, man! My boy is prim and proper, thank you very much.

Interesting observation #5: Jason seeks Leo more than he does Piper

At least in the first chapter. Leo is his promised partner for this first part of the book. They share cute lil friendship moments in the Grand Canyon excursion. He just has an easier time accepting that Leo is his best friend than the fact that Piper is his girlfriend and I find that very funny lol:

Another cute snipped of Jason & Leo's friendship:

Interesting observation #6: Jason has good instincts

Jason has moments in the very first chapter where he proves right off the bat that he has good instinct. For example, when his mind tries to remember the Gods after an afterthought about it:

PS: It happens to Percy too in the next book.

Than we have him feeling he is going to need his magical weapon very soon (spoiler: he does):

He is also shown to be a protector at heart, doesn't like bad kids and his gut tells him to protect Piper when the girls get mean to her:

Golden boy with a golden heart fr fr

And at last but not least

Interesting observation #6: Jason is Hera's "special package"

Throughout the series we will see Hera claim Jason as hers multiple times. The very first time it happens is indirectly, when she communicates to CHB about her "special package", which turns out to be Jason.

Hera & Jason have such a complex and intriguing relationship, we will dive deeper as I read the other chapters.

If you like my insights follow for more!

[bigassmoth]

Masterlist

An attempted collection of works updated 04/20/2025

SFW tagged with ⚡︎

OCs

Silas (Yandere Elf) created by @ meo-eiru x Reader

Yandere Monster x Hunter Reader: Concept

Yandere Angel x Reader: Concept

Yandere in Post Apocalypse x Reader: Concept

Daji (Yandere Fox Spirit) x Reader:

/ Introduction

Tel'ion (Yandere Drow turned Drider) x Reader:

/ Introduction

/ Carried Around on His Dick

Tokyo Debunker

⚡︎ Leo "I'm going to tell them you're my girlfriend lmao" Kurosagi 1 and 2

⚡︎ Gifts for Various Tokyo DB Boys (Vagastrom, Jabberwock, Mortkranken

⚡︎ Trusting You (Romeo, Haru, Leo, Jin)

⚡︎ Food Delivery headcanons (Rui, Haru, Sho+Hyde, Yuri)

⚡︎ Ed Attempts to Move In

Edward Hart x Reader: Smitten

Subaru Kagami x Reader: He can get carried away

What In Hell is Bad?

Lucifer x Reader: When you stay with him for medical observation

Belphegor x Reader: After a day of overstimulating himself he overstimulates you

Mammon x Reader x Biment drabble

Beelzebub x Reader x Foras: Lactation

Kings Sexting HC

Arknights

Kal'tsit headcanons

Black Butler

Writing Sebastian Michaelis x Reader Pieces

Sebastian Michaelis x Reader: A possessive demon and his unenthused prey

Sex Pest Sebastian Michaelis

Sebastian Michaelis x Reader: Possessive Sex

Sebastian Michaelis x Distrustful Reader

Sebastian x Reader: Attention

Sebastian Michaelis x Reader: Feeling Needy

Twisted Wonderland

Past v Present Lilia headcanons

General Lilia x Reader: Reprieve in the tent

Dungeon Meshi

Falin and Marcille x Reader: Marcille cleans you up after you help Falin

Mithrun headcanons

Inuyasha

Sesshomaru x Reader: He can't help being aroused by such a backbone

Bungo Stray Dogs

Dazai kink headcanons

Dazai relationship headcanons

Dazai x Reader: When you have stamina

Soukaku headcanons

Baldurs Gate 3

Companions react to inexperienced Reader

Yandere Harleep x Reader headcanons

Karlach x Reader Thirst

Wyll x Reader: Being his princess

Gale x Reader: He teaches you about the bedroom 1 and 2

Astarion:

⚡︎ Making him flustered

Sex Pollen via @ sicknasty03

Gen

Sakamoto Days- Nagumo Yoichi x Reader + Ask

Tears of Themis- Marius Von Hagen x Reader

[angelasscribbles]

WIP Folder Game Answers

These are the requests from the WIP Folder game I posted here

Requested by @walkerdrakewalker:

DREO

Multiple people have asked for a Dreo follow up. I haven’t gotten far with it, but it’s going to be set at Savanna and Max’s wedding. Here’s the beginning:

“Are you ready?” Leo watched Drake struggle with his tie. Shaking his head with a smile, he stepped over to help. “You’re never going go get the hang of formal attire, are you?”

“God, I hope not.” Drake huffed.

Savage Love

This will be chapter 39 of Savage Love

Naked, and still struggling to catch my breath, I glanced up at the man I’d just agreed to marry.

Liam stared down at me with such utter devotion in his gaze that it sent butterflies exploding through me.

It also terrified me.

There had been no romantic proposal or declaration of undying love.

I had agreed to marry him to keep him alive. Our discussion about how that would work and what it would look like had been interrupted by a vigorous bout of love making when the electricity that always snapped between us exploded, the potent mix of physical passion and intense emotion as we danced around the topic of my unspoken feelings for him cumulating in the physical expression of everything that I could not bring myself to express verbally.

Not yet.

I needed to ensure his survival first.

Requested by @harleybeaumont:

Kuck Kink Drake

I had this idea after I wrote My Lonely Valentine for last years Valentine’s Day prompt event. So it’s set in my The Agreement universe.

Here’s the snippet:

He buried his nose in her neck and inhaled deeply. Her scent, mixed with Liam’s and combined with the undeniable smell of sex was a heady combination.

“I should go shower first.” She extracted herself from his embrace and stood up.

His hand shot out to grab her by the wrist and pull her back. There was a new intensity burning in his eyes and he growled, “No, don’t.”

Domwell

Ok, this so far is a blank page. I’m thinking they meet when party boy Maxwell is visiting NYC and goes to the club Dominic works at.

Requested by @tessa-liam:

Delilah and Drake

This idea was requested by @aussiegurl1234 for her Drake and Delilah. She wants a scene that is similar to this one between my demon/vampire/human hybrid Riley and Elf/Human Liam in Dark Elf (a series kicked off by your request by the way lol)

This would be set after Delilah is turned obviously, which is something she hasn’t gotten to in her writing yet. So far it’s just an idea/request. I haven’t started writing it.

Dark Elf

Lady Hana Lee had been chosen because her mother’s Cordonian heritage ensured she’d answer the summons but her status as a foreign national would throw red tape in the way of any investigation into her disappearance, but the main reason she had been chosen was her unique heritage.

Hana herself had debated on accepting the invitation.

The Dark Kingdom

“Sire? The horses refuse to cross the partition. They can smell the evil!”

“It’s alright,” Maxwell told the captain of the royal guard as he dismounted. “They can’t climb up this slope anyway. We’ll proceed on foot.”

“Yes, Sire!” The captain turned back to yell orders at his men as Maxwell paced back and forth, his head tilted back to survey the cliff face he planned to scale.

All accounts pointed to the almost vanished but still faintly visible trail that led through the underbrush, across piles of broken rock fragments at the bottom of the mountain as the place the dogs had lost her trail.

He glanced from the incline to his men. “You’ll have to leave your armor behind. Strap your swords to your back and start climbing.” There was no way men in heavy armor would make it up the sheer cliff face.

“But sire…. We’ll be at a disadvantage without—”

“I know.” The young prince gritted his teeth. He didn’t like the thought of leading men to certain death, but there was no way he was letting the Esseri get away with this treachery.

The King’s Mistress 2

Duchess Riley Brooks was viewed with both envy and contempt by Cordonian high society.

Madeleine might have the crown, but Everyone knew where the real power lay. If you wanted the king’s ear, it wasn’t his wife you had to convince. It was his mistress.

The country’s newest duchess was a direct line to an introduction or an audience with the king.

[choicesficwriterscreations]

CFWC F/AtoW: March 16 - 22, 2025

✒️= Fanfic | 📱= Text Fics/Edits | 🎨 = Fanart Ⓜ️ = Mature Content 18+ | 🔥 = Explicit/NSFW 18+ 🏳️‍🌈 = LGBTQIA+

BLADES OF LIGHT AND SHADOW

Almost, But Never ✒️ | Tyril Starfury x F!Elf!MC - @aanya16071

Daenarya Digital Art 🎨 | F!Human!MC - @storyofmychoices

THE CURSED HEART

Ella and Leaf 🎨 | F!MC - @weetlebeetle C: @bri1234

THE FRESHMAN

The Boy Next Door (Series) ✒️ | Chris Powell x F!MC - @eadanga Part 2

The Graduate (Series) ✒️ | Chris Powell x F!MC - @eadanga Part 10

OPEN HEART

Inevitably Inevitable ✒️ | Ethan Ramsey x F!MC - @liaromancewriter

Love In Every Heartbeat - Continued (Series) ✒️ | Rafael Aveiro x F!MC - @rafasgirl23415 Chapter 47: Theatre Of Fear Chapter 48: Fighting For Hope Chapter 49: Against The Odds Chapter 50: Hope’s Fragile Hold Chapter 51: Facing Tomorrow: Strength In Vulnerability

RED CARPET DIARIES

Alexandra Rose Hunt 🎨 | F!MC - @theartoflovingthomashunt

Red Carpet Premier 🎨 | Thomas Hunt x F!MC - @oh-so-youre-a-nerd C: @theartoflovingthomashunt

THE ROYAL ROMANCE

High School Sweethearts (Series) ✒️ | Liam Rys x F!MC - @eadanga Part 3

Royal Love (Series) ✒️ | Eleanor Rys x M!OC - @eadanga Part 24

The Big Mistake ✒️ | Leo Rys x F!MC, Hana Lee x F!MC - @angelasscribbles

[silena-styles]

Heyyy, I joined Tumblr along with literally everyone else, so here I am, I guess. I'm the daughter of Aphrodite, in charge of the Pegasus stables at Camp Half-Blood, blah blah blah. Okay, you know the drill, right? I'm pan, use she/they pronouns, and my tags are #silena speaks and #beauregard blabbers

And here's everyone! (list will probably be updated frequently)

@percy-jackson-is-a-seaweed-brain / @that-dam-son-of-poseidon very awesome guy

@annabeth-in-your-chase she's smart and scary

@lukemessedup okay, maybe he was evil, but he has his charms, okay?

@amazing-war-god-ares the guy from that game + future father in law?

@explodes-cutely nerd

@the-better-stoll-brother very cool (bribery is not cool however)

@artemisandhunters the cooler twin ofc

@thatonebitheaterkid another kid of Apollo I think (why does this mfer have so many kids like are you collecting them like Pokémon or smth 😭)

@magnus-falafelking also dead (and annabeth's cousin)

@apollos-favorite-child the favorite

@miss-naomi-solace will's mom

@thesmallbadwolf lil bitch

@imhotterthanallofyou lil bitch Sr. (affectionate)

@zoe-can-see-the-stars-again the dam huntress constellation

@askoctavianhoo 1/8th god

@dionysus-god-of-all-things-wine nico is his favorite

@blitzen-imnot-that-short yes you are that short (+ gay for some elf guy)

@one-and-only-ariadne can we call you auntie ariadne 👉👈 this is a joke please do not stab me

@thomas-jefferson-jr the mfer who brought a rifle to doomsday while everyone else had traditional viking weaponry (you are so amazing for that tho)

@im-cool-and-your-not clarisse's sister?

@moththecabin7kid Apollo's kid idk

@everyone-is-a-punk her >>>>>>> she's also so pretty though wtf

@mallory-keen-to-kill clarisse, but dead and irish

@halfbornhalfdead um idk who is this guy again-

@stop-hammer-time supports gay rights

@god-of-powerpoint raven guy

@percys-blue-food-vendor better mom than Aphrodite (or any godly parent actually)

@nico-the-ghost-king / @nico-di-angelo-aaaaa GAY EMO BOI

@sunny-boy-solace / @will-solace-aaaaa very cool too

@the-argo-2-matchmaker PIPES

@grover-eats-cans the goat (literally and figuratively?)

@the-best-superman-on-olympus / @jason-graceeeeee blonde superman + stapler muncher

@best-dam-huntress badass

@the-queen-meg owns acne guy

@tyson-the-cyclops percy's lil bro

@why-did-i-get-acne acne guy (your haikus suck)

@im-aphrodite-dearies my mother is on here for some reason

@theonlycoachhedge why is this dude obsessed with bats

@silena-beauregard-official other me (insert spiderman meme here)

@hazel-is-confused HAZEL

@the-amazhang-teddybear FRANK

@team-leoo / @leo-valdez-graaa fire boi

OOC: my main blog is @siimplyapril and I use he/they :]

[snapdragonling]

4, 10, 15, 19 for cian, ardeth + sabine!

thank u tabby!! | oc creation questions

4. In developing their backstory, what elements of the world they live in played the most influential parts?

cian — the apostate stuff and the Dreamer stuff. Cian's backstory was heavily shaped by the fact that he was always hiding, and the Dreamer stuff was very influential during the later part of his backstory.

ardeth — he's entirely shaped by the Empire. i was very compelled by the idea of a mage who pours 110% of himself into the exploitative system that controls him because viewing it in a positive light is the only way he can make sense of it.

sabine — i knew that the world we were playing in was primarily human and any non-human races would be outsiders, so it was a deliberate choice to play an elf. that ostracisation factored heavily into her backstory and personality.

10. If they have an LI, how much of their character is tailored to be compatible to that person?

cian — no major LIs yet! blacksmith boy was created well after Cian so if anything he's the one who was tailored to be able to coax Cian into something that resembled a relationship. created in a lab to make Cian blush.

ardeth — i played Ardeth a grand total of 2 times and literally after the first session me and my DM were like "unfortunately it would be funny if Ardeth and his warden/handler had a Thing". it wasn't until we finished the two-shot that we thought more about it and figured out what a Thing would look like between these two. Ardeth wasn't so much tailored to fit Ed as much as we fleshed out their dynamic/history more, and what their relationship moving forward would look like. they were already pretty compatible in a really funny way. yapper x listener dynamic.

sabine — her two main LIs are Bran and Haland, and both of those sort of happened organically? (which is wild to say for the girls considering they are from completely separate campaigns. the power of tossing ideas back and forth with a friend). Haland was part of her canon backstory and they both kind of softened towards each other slightly as I thought more about their dynamic and realised that they probably really respected/cared about each other (in their own fucked up way). with Bran it was less about tailoring/changing Sabine and more about considering how she would actually act in a genuine relationship with her. they miraculously fit together so well already, but it was all about understanding the negotiation and push and pull and eventual softness.

15. What is something about your OC can make you laugh?

cian — every time he gets flustered or shy. also whenever he tells a bad but well-meaning lie (à la the Leo tea/flying incident)

ardeth — my fave moment was Ardeth clinging to Ed and wailing "KILL ME ED KILL ME" because he'd been cursed to have the word "liar" appear on his forehead whenever he told the truth and mr Teachers Pet couldn't bear it

sabine — whenever she's a real cranky bitch about incredibly low-stakes situations, or alternatively when she's particularly content and radiates big cat energy.

19. What is your favorite fact about your OC?

cian — guy who is a vessel!!! guy who cannot stop having other people's memories and feelings beamed into his head!!! i also love how badly he wants to help and how that desire to help keeps inadvertently hurting people 🙃

ardeth — it takes him so long to let go of the Empire. he put so much of himself into the job and he's terrified of existing without it, because somewhere deep down he knows that if he lets go of it he'll have to reckon with the cold reality of his exploitation. luckily Ed (who always gave his absolute bare minimum to the Empire and is happy to be rid of it) is there to help him through it 👍

sabine — i love how aware and possessive she is of her own issues. the decades of self destruction almost killed her and she owns it. the fractured mess of her body is hers. she can't take any satisfaction in dragging herself out of the pit if she doesn't acknowledge all the fucked up parts. her pride definitely plays into this as well. like yeah she's a wreck and the survivor's guilt eats her alive and she wants to die fairly often but she hasn't. she won't. she's too stubborn.

[nyxdreamweaver]

Local albino boy forgot everything but his name

Jason's POV

Word count: 7,491

Warning: Swearing, spoilers to TLH (canon will derail starting now)

Likes ❤️ , reblogs 🔁 and comments 💬 are much appreciated :3 Lmk if you want to be tagged for the next updates

<<Previous Next>>

───────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────────

Ever since he woke up from his sleep, Jason’s day continued to get weirder.

First of all, he found himself in the backseat of a school bus full of unfamiliar kids, just like his dream, but this time, he was physically there. They were loud and chatty. Some were using weird machine boxes with long wires that go inside the ears. And second of all, Jason doesn't remember anything in his life beyond his first name, which should be a concerning thing to think about right now but there's a bigger issue he needs to worry about: 1) Jason is inside a bus with a bunch of strangers who he doesn't know, 2) he don't know if they know him or not and 3) sitting there with zero reconciliation of his life. The second a student or the teacher looks his way and asks who he is, he's doomed.

‘Just stay still. If I don't move an inch, no one will notice.’ He internally said to himself, trying to make himself look as small and quiet as possible. ‘Just stay calm and wait it out so long as no one talks to me.’

Just then, someone took his hand and squeezed it. “Hey, are you okay?”

‘Fortuna….’ “I’m okay, don´t worry, I'm fine-” Jason said when he turned to face the mystery person and was stunned. Next to him was a girl wearing a light blue fleece snowboarding jacket, a pale tan shirt, and hiking boots. Her dark brown hair was long and messy, with two braids split from her neck and thin strands sticking out from the sides of her face. She was really pretty, with her eyes shining brightly like amber itself, and the loose hair ends were shaped like tiny hearts.

‘So pretty…’

The girl blushed, making him realize he spoke out loud. “I’m sorry-”

“No, no, it's fine considering that we're dating…”

“Right, right…wait what?”Jason said, perplexed. “We're dating?!”

The pretty girl looked at Jason, her face showing a mix of Are you serious? and is this a joke? “Jason, are you trying to play a prank? We're not that dumb enough to fall for that kind of joke.” She said, patting his hands.

“Yeah, that's usually my job.” A boy sitting in front of Jason and the pretty girl turned to face them. “Are you trying to get me fired, JJ?”

He looked like a Latino dryadalis, with long coily black hair, pointy ears with gold piercings, a cheerful, round face with a Septum, and a mischievous smile that told you right away this guy should not be trusted around matches or sharp objects. His long, nimble fingers wouldn't stop moving- drumming on the leather seat, sweeping his hair behind his ears, fiddling with the buttons of his army fatigue jacket, Either the kid was naturally hyper or he consumed enough sugar to give an elephant a heart attack. Wait..

'What’s a dryadalis? And how does he know that?'

“You should leave the pranks to me and Pipes over here.” The elf boy pointed to the girl, who's Piper. “We're basically experts. Remember the time when we snuck into the chemistry lab during gym and made that huge stink bomb to put inside Mr. Joseph's room?”

“Oh my god, yes! Also, when Leo convinced us to sneak out outside to the farm area and gather a bunch of chickens to put them in the principal's office? I was laughing so hard when-” As the two started exchanging stories, Jason stayed quiet as he soaked in the new information he found.

These two Piper and Leo - are his friends, which means that he belongs on the bus so he can't get in trouble and they might know where they are. Though there is something that's still causing him confusion.

'Why can't I remember them?'

With perfect timing, a teacher from the front shouted, “All right, cupcakes, listen up!”

The man was obviously a coach, with his baseball cap pulled over his head, but you could see his beady eyes. He had a goatee and a very sour face- like he just ate twelve slices of lemon in one go. HIs buff arms and chest pushed against a bright orange polo shirt. His nylon workout pants and Nikes were surprisingly spotless. A plastic whistle hung from his neck, and a megaphone was clipped to his belt. He would've looked much more scary and intense if he was taller than five feet. When he stood up in the aisle, a student yelled out, “Yo, stand up, Coach Hedge!” making everyone but Jason in the bus laugh.

”I heard that!” Coach Hedge scanned the bus for the heckler when his eyes fixated onto Jason, his scowl deepening. A jolt went through Jason's spine: he knew it, he wasn't supposed to be here, and only Jason and the coach knew the truth. He squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the man to drag him from the back and throw him out of the bus, but Hedge looked away and spoke to the kids.

”We will be there in five minutes. Stay with your partners and finish the worksheet I'll give to you once we are there. If any one of you comedians crack another joke about me or cause any sort of trouble during this trip, I'll personally send you cupcakes back to school via airmail.” As if to demonstrate to them, he picked up a plastic bat and swung it like he did a home run.

“Is he allowed to speak to us like that?” He whispered to Piper, who shrugged. “He always does, this is Wilderness School ‘where the kids are the animals and the teachers are the zookeepers' She said it like it was an inside joke they shared. “We are all here for a reason: we broke the law, and now we have to pay for our crimes.”

“It has to be a mistake, I don't belong here.” Jason said, wanting to be understood. “I didn't do anything wrong!”

Leo snickered at that. “Yeah, sure. None of us did anything wrong! I didn't run away six times, and Piper didn't steal a BMW. We were all framed for our crimes!!”

Piper's face flushed, swatting her hands at Leo in fury. “I already told you a million times, I didn't steal that car!”

“Right, you 'talked' to the dealer, and he 'gave' it to you, a fourteen year old.” Said Leo, raising his eyebrows at Jason like, Can you believe her? while Piper buried her face in her hands and groaned. “Honestly Pipes, you shouldn't feel embarrassed about it, it sounds cool as fuck. We should do that when we get out of here.” She groaned even louder.

”Quiet in the back!“ Coach Hedge screamed, almost dropping his sandwich on the dirty floor. “Trying to eat over here!”

”Ah Coach, never change…anyways.“ He turned back to face Jason. “You got an extra copy of the homework sheet from Mr. Joseph? I already used mine for spitwad and shot them at the band kids earlier, are you okay 'cause you're staring at me like I have something on my face? Did Gavin draw it again during science, they swore that they'd stopped doing that.”

“I..don't know you. I don't remember anyone or anything!”

Leo gave him a creepy crocodile grin. “Sure… I'm totally not an evil clone made to replace your awesome best friend.“

“Leo Valdez!” The coach yells from the front again. “Is there a problem back there?“ Leo winked at Jason and Piper before yelling back, “Sorry Coach, I couldn't hear you from here! Can you use your megaphone?” Coach Hedge grunted, looking pleased to have an excuse to use his new megaphone while the other kids groaned. He unclipped the megaphone from his belt and continued giving directions, but his voice came out like Darth Vader’s voice. The kids started cracking up. The coach tried again, but this time, the megaphone blared: “The cow says moo!” The kids howled in laughter, and the coach slammed down the megaphone.

“Valdez!”

Piper stifled a laugh. “My god, Leo. How did you do that?” Leo slipped a tiny Phillips head screwdriver from his sleeve. “I’m a special little boy.”

“Guys, seriously,” Jason pleaded. “What am I doing here? Where are we going?”

Piper knit her eyebrows. “Jason, are you joking?”

“No! I have no idea—”

“Aw, yeah, he’s totally joking,” Leo said. “He’s trying to get me back for that shaving cream on the Jell-O thing, aren’t you? I already said sorry.” Jason only could stare at him blankly. Why doesn’t these guys understand that he has zero memories about them or anything about his entire life?

“No, I think he’s serious.” Piper tried to take his hand again, but he pulled it away. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I don’t—I can’t—”

“That’s it!” Coach Hedge shouts from the front. “The back row has just volunteered to clean up after lunch!”

The rest of the kids cheered as Leo huffed.

“There’s a shocker,” he muttered. But Piper kept her eyes on Jason, like she couldn’t decide whether to be hurt or worried.

“Did you hit your head or something? You really don’t know who we are?” Jason shrugged helplessly. “It’s much worse than that. I don’t know who I am.”

───────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────────

The bus stopped right at the entrance of a big grey building that resembled a museum, just sitting right in the middle of nowhere, 'Maybe that's the name of the museum: The National Museum of Nowhere, where we have no historical value.' he thought before Coach Hedge snapped him out of his thoughts. “All right, everybody get off in a single file line- HEY!! No pushing Ethan, I see you!” Soon every student got off of the bus as Jason’s head swirled around trying to take in his surroundings. Dusty earth safe metal railings were there to protect any bystanders from falling into the chasms nearby and the blazing sun rays rained down from the skies above to bless them with terrible sunburns (Rip JJ).

And yet, a cold breeze blew across the desert making the boy shiver. Jason hadn't paid attention to what he was wearing, but it wasn't enough for the cold weather: light blue jeans and white sneakers, a purple T-shirt with a weird acronym, and a thin black windbreaker.

’SRPQ? What kind of fashion sense did I have?’ He thought, glancing down his t-shirt.

Coach Hedge starts passing down sheets of paper to the students, yelling out loud directions as usual. “Listen up, I’m not gonna repeat this twice: I have enough sheets for only half of the class so stay with your partners, NO trios!” He glared at Jason and his ‘friends’. “And make sure not to lose them or else you’ll be running three miles during the weekend with the track team.”

As Coach shoved a paper into the trio’s hands, Piper sighed. ”Damn,” she said. “How can we stay together? Should we ask to be in a group instead since there aren't a lot of people?”

Puzzled, Jason asked. ”Didn't Coach say 'no trios allowed'? He literally looked at us when he said it!”

Leo patted Jason's arm since Leo couldn't reach the top of his shoulder. ”Oh Jason, Jason, Jason. We're troublemakers, so we kinda, you know, break the rules, no matter what teachers say.”

“Not the time for jokes, Lee.” Piper scolded the latino, “I think he does have amnesia. Maybe we should tell Coach or call 911 for help.”

“Hello? This is Wilderness School. We don‘t have phones to call for help! And plus, if we ask Coach for help, he would just smack JJ’s head with his bat and just say ’Suck it up, cupcake.’”

“Okay, I just want to say this: I don’t want to get my head smacked.” Jason inputted.

Piper pinched the bridge of her nose in. “Well It’s better to ask than wait it out. Look, after the field trip we’ll ask Coach to take us to the local hospital and get Jason checked out, okay?”

“Right, right,” Leo nodded, “Oh, I can fit in Jason’s shirt! I am pretty small, so I could totally hide in it easily!”

“Goddamn it, Leo!”

Suddenly, a large hand grasped on Piper's shoulder. One of the boys from the class fell back to them while the class was heading to the museum. The new guy forced himself in between Jason and Piper, and pushed Leo aside.

“Yo, Piper, where have you been? You’re my partner for the day, excited?” The new guy has a dark brown Superman haircut, a deep tan, and teeth so shiny that the dentist should’ve given him a warning label to warn everyone: Do not look directly at it, permanent blindness will occur.

Everything about this guy rubbed Jason the wrong way, like there was an aura surrounding him saying Don’t mess with me or else. He had a Dallas Cowboy jersey, light blue western pants, and black boots, and he smiled like he was blessed with pure beauty by the gods themselves and were sent here to melt the hearts of delinquent girls. Jason immediately wanted that guy dead and left in a ditch.

Jason growled at the guy while Leo glared straight at the creep so hard, lasers would've come out and melted the boy's face.

The stranger held up his hands in the air like he was caught by the police. “Woah, woah. Calm down boys, I'm just here to pick up my girl. I promise to bring her back after the field trip.”

Piper scowled at him, shooing him away, “Actually Dylan, I’m going to partner with my friends.”

“I don't know if I remember correctly but Coach said no trios so...” He pestered, leaning in closer.

Leo grabbed Piper’s arm and pulled her closer to him and Jason. “Back off Dylan, she’s already in a group. Why do you go chuck one of your hockey friends into the Grand Canyon or something.”

Dylan looked down at Leo and howled in laughter. “Okay shortstack,” he snorted, pushing Leo away, almost making him trip, and dragged Piper away. She shot a glance at Jason, pleading to him for help, who- while uncomfortable and shocked- clenched his fists but, in the end he did nothing to help.

“Fucking idiota,” Leo remarked, after they walked into the museum. “Almost wrinkled my jacket because of him.” He dusted from his cargo pants and held out his arm for Jason. “Look at me! I’m Dylan! I have the best hair and so many girls throw themselves at me. I should marry myself because I look so hot!”

For the first time today, Jason laughed as Leo bowed down to his singular audience member. “Thank you! Thank you! I'm here to entertain.”

“As funny and accurate that was, who was that jerk?”

Leo stared at him blankly, like he just admitted that he talks to trees on the weekend. “Wow, you’re really dedicated to the whole ‘amneisa’ act, huh?”

Jason played with the loose worksheet in his hands. “You don’t believe me, do you?”

“In my defense,” Leo said, “It does sound a bit crazy- like it sounds like you stole the idea from a really bad movie.” He held out his hand, palms opened, right at Jason. “The worksheet, please.”

Jason raised an eyebrow.

“What?” He asked, “You know these sheets they give us are complete bullshit, most of the time you could find the answers on the internet- that is, you have a secret phone they didn't take from us in orientation.”

He points to himself with his thumbs. “Besides, you have me- I’ve been cheating the system since we got here. All you have to do is write the answers in a messy way, that way Coach Hedge couldn’t read it and would have to give us a good grade.”

While Jason isn't sure about that plan, one thing he is sure about is that he doesn't understand anything from this worksheet like ‘name three sedimentary strata you observed’ and any attempt on understanding would strain his brain. He gave the paper to Leo.

“Thank you. So.. you’ve lost all memories of basically everything you´ve ever known?”

Jason nods.

“So that means… I can reuse my old jokes on you!! Oh my god, this is the best day! Come on!”

Jason smiled as he followed Leo into the museum.

───────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────────

They walked through the bleak building, stopping at one place onto another while Coach Hedge talked about each exhibit with his megaphone, still making him sound either like a sith lord or blast out phrases like 'The pig says oink!’ confusing the museum workers passing by. During this, Leo grabbed a bunch of miscellaneous items from his army jacket (some bolts, two wooden popsicle sticks, a thin red wire, etc) and started fidgeting around with them. To keep his thin hands busy.

The two walked behind the class a few paces back, Leo had the folded paper shoved into his back pocket, with all the ‘answers’ written on it, leaving them some free time.

Jason was too absent minded to pay close attention to the lectures or the giant paintings about whatever, but he heard some passing words from the Coach, apparently this museum was about the Grand Canyon (duh) and the Hualapai tribe who currently owns the building.

“So, here's a simple crash course about your life here, my amnestic friend,” Leo said, in a helpful tone that made Jason believe that this wouldn't be so simple. “We go to the 'Wilderness School' – Leo made airs with his fingers again. “Which means we're 'bad kids.' Your family, or the court, whichever came first, decided that you were a danger to society and they shipped you off to this lovely prison– sorry, 'boarding school'-- in Armpit, Nevada, where you learn valuable nature skills like running ten miles every day through the cacti and weave little daisies into hats! And on special days when we all 'behave,' we all get to go outside to the public for 'educational' field trips with wonderful teachers like Coach Hedge, who keeps us in line with his baseball bat and threats on our livelihoods. Is it all coming back now?”

“No, sadly.” Jason glanced at the other kids: around twenty guys were here and around fifteen girls. No one looked like hardened criminals, but he wondered what they'd all done to be sent to a school for delinquents, and he wondered why people thought he belonged with them.

Absorbing all of the information, Jason asked a few questions. “Ok… Who am I? Where was I from? How.. did we,” He gestures both to him and Leo. “became friends. I don’t wanna be rude but you two are a bit.. hyper.”

Despite playing around with the objects, Leo grinned up at him. “You? You’re Jason, the poster Boy Scout, basically- a wet blanket but in a good way. If you were a type of dog, you would’ve been a Golden retriever with how sweet you are and with a terribly high moral compress. I have no clue how you ended up here considering how you barely cause trouble at school. Rather out of the three of us, you stop us from causing trouble. You also never talk about your home life or how you got your cool scars on your hands, which is fine since half of us here have pretty bad experiences in our lives and don’t like to talk about it. There was this awesome girl I met a few years ago: she didn’t talk about what happened before we met and she also avoided the topic of home often except that one time, but that’s private. Unlike me and Pied Piper who came at the beginning of the year, you came into the middle of the semester, very determined not to speak to anyone, very guarded and cautious but me and Pipes pestered you so much that we kinda grew on you and we've been best friends ever since. We basically saved you from a life of loneliness, specifically your social life.”

Jason nodded along, searching through his mind to remember any sort of memories. But came up empty handed.

“Now Dylan- that’s the creep who’s torturing Piper right now- is a jerk. No questions there. Anyone who crosses him would end up in a full body cast. If me and Pied Piper weren't here, you would've immediately attempted to fight the meathead in the name of justice and probably lost, badly. No offense.”

“None taken, continue.”

“And Coach Hedge is the new gym teacher and the baseball coach- like Piper and I, came at the beginning of the school year. He uses his bat to hit us soft enough not to catch a case but hard enough to make us regret causing problems. Sometimes I always feel like he could just see through us whenever we hang out but I could be seeing things. Piper recently became your girlfriend after the shooting stars event a couple weeks ago. And I’m your super cool best friend who you worship the very ground I walk, anything jogging your memory?”

Jason strained his brain again for something- anything that could help him! But he just couldn’t.

“..Nothing.”

Leo patted his back, an awkward attempt to comfort his friend but Jason appreciated it.

A few meters away, a trio of girls were snickering and looking at Piper, who at the moment is suffering under Dylan’s long and winded talk on why he would be a much better boyfriend than Jason (Boy please.) Jason assumed that they were the popular clique, from their matching skinny jeans, cotton pink acrylic nails and enough clumpy makeup for a halloween party.

One of them said, “Hey, Piper, doesn’t your tribe own this place? Did you do a rain dance to get in for free?”

The rest of the girls laughed. Even Piper's partner Dylan couldn't stifle a smile at the rude comment. Jason saw Piper's arms trembling, though he could tell that she's clenching her fists.

“If you don’t remember, my dad and I are from the Cherokee tribe, not Hualapai tribe. Not that you've got enough brain cells to understand the clear difference, huh Isabel?” Piper retorted, frowning.

Isabel widens her eyes in ‘fake’ surprise, like an owl with huge glittery eyeshadow mocking her. “Oh, I'm sorry. It was probably your mom who was a part of the tribe. Oh, wait. You never met her!”

Piper ignored them, but Jason was ready to punch them himself, glaring straight at the girl herself. He might not remember Piper, or even who he was, but he knew deep down in his heart, he hated mean kids.

Before Jason could storm over to the group and punch them straight in the face, Leo caught his arm. “Be cool. Piper doesn’t like us fighting her battles. Besides, if those girls found out the truth about her dad, they’d all be bowing down to her and screaming, ‘We’re not worthy! Spare us mercy, dear Piper!’”

“Why? What about her dad?” Leo laughed in disbelief. “You’re not kidding? You really don’t remember that your girlfriend’s dad—”

“I wished I did but for the hundredth time, I.don't.know.anything. I know nothing about Piper, my supposed ‘girlfriend’, I know nothing about you, my ’best friend’. Why do you think I know who her dad is?”

Leo whistled. “Whatever. We have to talk after we get back to the dorms. You owe us a sleepover for this act you're pulling. Anyways, Pipes can handle those girls because-”

A loud squeal of pain echoed through the halls as the previous girl, Isabel, had her hands on her nose, small blood stains painted on her white sleeves. Her friends panic and scream while Piper smirks from their reactions, her right hand was covered in the same blood from the crybaby. At times like these, Jason would’ve felt sympathy for the other person but she had it coming for being a jerk.

“Coach Hedge! Piper just punched Isa!” One of Isa’s minions screeched, making everyone stop and stare. “She’s bleeding from her nose!”

There, Hedge stopped talking about why the Grand Canyon was red and turned to face the commotion. “McLean! Did you punch Johnson?!” He shouted with his megaphone, afterwards it said ‘Bahh go the sheep!’

Jason started to sweat. His girlfriend was about to get in trouble and probably be punished. He quickly turned to where the girls were standing. Instead of being scared of being caught like what Jason expected her to feel, Piper only gave Coach a glare and placed her hands on her hips. She seemed to give off a sense of confidence and power, like some sort of beautiful goddess…

“No I didn’t. She just bumped into one of the pillars and hit her nose, right Mary?” Mary, who looked like a deer in headlights at the attention, came in defense of Piper. “Y-yeah! I saw Isabel bump her nose against the wall!”

Soon, everyone started to whisper that yeah, they didn't see Piper punch that girl, that Isabel just bumped into one of the museum's pillars or something else. While Jason did notice the blood on her hand, he didn't see Piper hit the girl at all and if she says she didn’t do it, then there was no way she could've ever do that-

“That’s why.” Leo remarked, grinning wider than the cheshire cat himself.

Coach Hedge looked back and forth at the two girls before signing. “Wilson, take Johnson to the museum front desk. They should have some sort of first aid kit for your nose. Everyone else, we'll keep moving.”

Isa’s lackey took a crying Isabel to the front desk in the opposite way while the rest of the class continued down the halls.

Jason was jaw dropped, 100% shocked by the whole scene while Leo was laughing at his reaction. “Oh my god, your face was so funny!!”

“But, how did she do that!? I thought she was gonna get in trouble.”

“To explain that scene, for some reason Piper can be very pervasive to the point where no one can ever pin us down for our crimes. And if they do figure it out, we just hide behind you and you can just scare them away.” Leo twirled with his hoodie strings. “Honestly, it's super helpful after we cause too much chaos and we get caught red handed. You’re like our bodyguard!!”

Jason stared at the latino in confusion and a bit of sadness. “Am I really that scary?” He

“Not that scary not by me and Piper's standards but to other people, they say you look pretty intimidating. Even some of the teachers are scared of you, minus Coach Hedge, but he's a whole other breed of man. I remember this one time in gym class,”

While Leo was chatting up a storm about one of 'their adventures' again, Jason swore he saw a faint pink swirly mist floating around Piper but quickly shaked that thought away.

'I really gotta figure out what's going on...'

───────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────────

Finally, the class reached the far end of the exhibit hall, where there were large glass doors that led them onto a glass terrace.

“All right cupcakes listen up,” Coach Hedge announced. “You are about to witness the Grand Canyon. Don‘t break the glass. The skywalk can hold up to seventy jumbo jets, so you featherweights should be safe out there. If possible, try to avoid pushing each other off over the edge, I don’t want to deal with any paperwork.”

The Coach unlocked the doors, revealing the Grand Canyon in its full beauty. Everyone then spread out across the skywalk, which was a long horseshoe shaped walkway made of protective glass, where you could see below the canyon.

“Damn,” Leo said. “That's so cool.”

Jason agreed with Leo on this, even with his memories erased and this weird feeling in his stomach that he doesn't belong here, he couldn't help but be in awe at the sights.

The two stopped by one of the railings as they soaked in the view. Despite everything that’s been going wrong since he woke up, Jason can admit that he still found the chance to admire the view. They were all so high up from the round that the birds were circling below them. At the very bottom of the place, was a sky blue river with green fora running on the side. Meanwhile in the sky a couple feet away, banks of storm clouds had been moving closer since the class was inside the building, casting dark shadows upon the cliff sides. The bright red clashes against the soft orange striking downwards, like a sacrificial stuffed bear being cut open in the Augur temples, and was burned for an omen…. Wait, what?

Jason felt a piercing pain from his eyes increasing. ‘By the gods, why do I keep thinking about stuff like that?’ Jason groaned. His brain racing around, warning him that danger is here.

“Hey dude, you okay?” Leo injected. “You look like you're gonna hurl right into the canyon.”

Jason grabbed onto the railing for support. He was sweating and shivering, it had nothing to do with heights. He blinked, and the pain behind his eyes subsided.

“Yeah, I’m okay.” he managed. “Just a headache.” Thunder rumbled, and the dark clouds seemed to be getting closer to them.

Leo nodded and turned to the sky. “Damn, those dark clouds are over there, but the rest of the sky is clear.”

Jason looked up and saw that Leo was right. A circle of dark clouds had surrounded the sky walk, but besides that, it's all clear skies. He had a bad feeling about it.

“All right, cupcakes!!” Coach Hedge yelled. He frowned at the whole weather situation. “We may have to cut this short so hurry up with those worksheets!! Remember to write complete sentences.“

The storm rumbled and Jason's head began to hurt throb again. Not knowing why, Jason slipped his hands into his pocket when he hit a solid metal. Pulling out the mysterious object, in his hands was a gold coin- one that is the size of a half dollar, but thicker and uneven like the craftsmith made this blindfolded. Stamped on one side was a picture of a battle-axe. On the other was some guy's face wreathed in laurels and on the other side were the initials ivlivs engraved.

[“Can I open my eyes now? I wanna see it!”

“Almost, little birdie,” Someone answered, a girl. “I just need to find it. Just keep your eyes closed.”

After a while, the girl spoke. “Okay, it's ready now! Now hold out your hands but don't open your eyes till I say so.”

Jason nodded and held out his hands, making sure not to peek. As he waited, a cold metal was placed in his pudgy hands. “Okay, open your eyes!”

He quickly opened his eyes and looked down at his palms to find…

“It's.. a coin?” Little Jason asked, holding up the gold coin. ”I thought I was getting my weapon today, why do I have this?“ The girl in front of him laughed as he watched in confusion. Pushing her auburn curls out of her eyes, she kneels down to Jason’s height and smiles.

“No JJ, it's a magic battle sword disguised as a coin. Whenever you need a weapon during a fight, just flip this coin…” She tossed the coin into the air and it transformed into a giant sword. Catching it, the sword turned back into a coin. The auburn girl handed it back to Jason who was staring in awe at it. “And poof! A giant sword you can use to slay your enemies!! Made it enchanted just for you to use.”

“Woah!!” He exclaimed, vibrating with joy. “This is so awesome!! Thank you Cyra!!” Then right before he ran out the room, Jason quickly hugged Cyra. “Thank you sis. This is the best birthday gift ever!”

Cyra looked taken back, being called ‘sis’ before ruffling his shaggy hair. “You're welcome, kiddo. Happy birthday..”]

“Hello? Earth to Superman! Are you still there?”

Suddenly, Jason found himself back in the present and both Leo and Piper were standing next to him sighing in relief. Their eyes shined with concern as they scanned him for any signs of a problem.

Leo was the first to ask. “Are you okay? You've been staring at that coin for a while and I got worried. And then Piper came to hide from Jerkface when she saw you stuck in a weird trance too.”

Piper nodded, reaching out for his hand before hesitating, thinking he wasn't comfortable. “Is your head getting worse? We can take you to the front desk and call an ambula-”

“No! No, no. I'm fine. I keep having these.. weird headaches.” Jason said, choosing not to tell them about the flashback.

´I should wait till I can find more information,´ he said to himself. ´This isn't just normal amnesia.´

“Okay you’re great and all, but where the hell did you get that coin!?” Leo pointed at the gold coin. “Have you been holding out on us!? Where did you get this?”

Piper pinched his arm. “You dumbass, that's not important right now.” She looked back at Jason. “Are you feeling alright? We can ask Coach Hedge to go to the front desk for help.”

Before Jason could speak, someone interrupted him.

“Mclean! Stop lazing around and finish your worksheet!“ Yelled Coach Hedge, his megaphone emitting a grating squeaky noise making everyone outside cover their ears.

Piper groaned. “Uggh, I don't wanna go!! Dylan is so annoying and he isn't helping on the worksheet. He's just goofing around or flirting with me…”

Leo patted her shoulder. “Do you need me to cause an ‘accident’ and send him to the hospital? All I need is a spork, tape and two needles.”

“As great as that sounds making him suffer, Coach would somehow know it's us.” Piper sighs. “Besides, I can handle it for a bit longer.”

“Yo, Piper~” Dylan called out. “Where are you, sweetheart?”

The trio cringed at that. “Actually, I might be able to get you some needles and a spork.” Piper said.

Then, Piper left to return back to her personal hell, leaving Leo and Jason alone.

“So,” Leo interjected. “Where did you get this coin?” He pointed at the strange coin. “I've never seen that design before.”

“It's nothing.” Jason said, slipping the coin back into his pocket, fully knowing that the strange coin is a clue to what's going on.

───────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────────

While Jason was staring out into the open sky counting the number of birds he's seen (he's currently on fourteen birds), Leo was leaning on the railing too far close to the edge, making Jason nervous that he’d fall in. He may not remember his time here at the school or the people he's supposed to know, but Leo and Piper have slowly grown on him and Jason didn’t want to see either of them get hurt.

“Psh, hey. Watch this.” Leo said in a hushed tone revealing what he had. In his hands was a handmade helicopter, each part was made from the items Leo had earlier. He twisted the tiny wire connected to the two popsicles sticks, making it spin upwards like a helicopter and started flying in the direction of the canyon. Leo began cheering and kept leaning in closer to the edge, he was so close from falling that Jason quickly grabbed onto the army jacket to hold him back. The helicopter was halfway across the chasm when it the blade stopped working, making the machine slowly fall into the canyon, and breaking at the very bottom.

“Damn it!” Leo grunted, slamming his hand on the metal rails. “It broke again.” Frustrated by his failure.

But Jason thought otherwise. “That was so cool! How did you do that? You just built that out of popsicle sticks and rubber bands and it flew across the Grand Canyon!? That is so. so.” There were so many words Jason could use to describe what he just saw: but he knew not to never underestimate Leo Valdez from what he’s seen.

Baffered by this reaction, Leo tried to degrade himself. “I mean- it was pretty easy. Someone else could do it better. Plus, it fell halfway when I wanted it to fly to the other side, so...”

“But you made it fly, that's still so..amazing! You should be feeling proud of it. You have a talent for engineering.”

Leo's eyes widened, looking a bit flustered by the compliment. “Huh.. thanks Supes. It’s nice to hear that, even if you lost your memories.” Wanting to say more, Jason opened his mouth to keep complimenting his best friend, Coach Hedge unintentionally ruined the moment when he yelled at some kids trying to sneak away with his megaphone, still stuck in the Darth Vader voice.

“Step away from the doors or I will make the principal send you all to the solidarity rooms!” Clearly, Coach's threat was super effective because the group quickly retreated back to where they were previously.

“What are the solidarity rooms?” Jason asked. “Are they that bad?”

Leo shrugged. “I don't know much about them since I never went there but you went in there once after a lunchroom fight with these guys Ethan and Brian and you somehow ended up in the crossfire. The two of you were then sent to the solidarity room for around four days.” He pulled out a red rubber band and played around with it as he continued talking. “Once it was over and you were sent back to the dorms, we tried to ask you about the whole thing but you had this….weird blank stare like you just stared into a black hole for five hours straight.”

“After that, you made us promise to never go in there. Piper and I were confused but made sure you never went back there again.

“Huh..” Jason said, looking downwards in the canyon, now counting the number of weeds he sees on the side. “This is all so confusing…”

For the first time today, Leo was quiet, tapping his fingers on the metal railing while he looked in deep thought. “Honestly, this whole ‘losing your memories out of nowhere’ thing is the most confusing thing ever! Just before we left school, you were all fine and dandy, but right after you woke up, bam! Every memory you’ve ever had was wiped clean.”

“Do you remember when we first met? What did we talk about then”

“I think we talked about….” Leo frowned. “Shit, I don't know, man. I have ADHD, you can't expect me to remember every little detail.”

“Well I don't remember any of you at all. I don't know anybody here. What if-”

“That you are right, and everyone here just has fake memories about you?“

A little voice echoed inside his head. ´Not quite…´ But the whole thing sounds crazy, every kid here just took him for granted. Like they know he's supposed to be here- except for Coach Hedge. He might know something about Jason.

“I'll be right back.” Before Leo could protest, Jason walked across the skywalk. The only people he has seen in this building were the workers and his class. Maybe they had the whole place to themselves or maybe the class scared away the tourists from here. Most of the kids were done with the worksheet so they spent the time talking with their friends or joking around. Two boys Jason passed by were tossing pennies down the Canyon. And about fifty feet away was Piper trying to focus on the worksheet but Dylan was busy harassing her by putting his hand on her shoulder and flashing his blinding teeth at her. She glanced at Jason, mouthing out to him. Please punch this guy right now Jason motions her to hold on, making a mental note to beat the shit out of Dylan later.

Jason finally reached Coach Hedge, who was staring right up at the dark clouds, which had tripled in size, holding out his bat.

“Did you do this?” the Coach asked him. Jason took a step back. Was he talking about him?

“What do you mean?” By the way Coach was asking, it sounded like he believed that Jason made those storm clouds.

Coach Hedge glared at him, with his beady eyes peeking out from his hat’s brim. “Don’t play with me, kid. What's going on? and why are you causing problems at my job?”

“You mean.. You don’t know me?” Jason said. “I’m not a student?”

Hedge snorted. “No, no, I´ve seen you at the school, you’re a student here, but then something else is wrong here...”

Jason was relieved to hear that he almost cried right there. He was supposed to be here! He wasn’t an outsider! “Okay thank you for the confirmation, but something else is wrong here.”

Coach Hedge scratched his head in confusion. “What d'ya mean? You gotta go to the bathroom or something?”

“No, not that! I can’t remember anything about my life! Like someone wiped my memories clean.”

“I see…” Hedge's gruff voice dropped into a murmur, like he was sharing a dark secret. “The Mist surrounding you is a lot different from the other two but something else has been messing with my nose. I've been smelling monsters for a couple of days now. There must be an infiltrator hiding in the Mist as well, but you don't smell like one. You smell like a Half-blood, so speak the truth- who are you and where did you come from?”

Most of what Coach Hedge said made absolutely no sense but Jason decided to answer honestly. “I don't know who I am. I have no memories to explain where I came from and you need to help me.”

Coach Hedge studied his face like he was trying to read Jason’s thoughts.

“Great,” He huffed. “You're speaking the truth.”

“I am, and what do those words mean!? Half-bloods and monsters? Is this a game?”

Hedge narrowed his eyes. One part of Jason was seriously thinking this guy is nuts but another part of himself said otherwise.

“Look, kid,” Hedge started to explain. “I don't know who you are but I do know what you are, and that causes more trouble for me. Now I gotta protect the three of you rather than two. Are you the special package? Is that it?

When Coach Hedge said, ‘special package’, something jolted in his brain. He had heard that before.

“What did you say?”

Hedge looked up at the storm again. The clouds were getting thicker and darker, hovering right above the skywalk.

“This morning,” Coach Hedge said. “I got a message sent from camp. They've sent an extraction team currently on the way. They mentioned something about a ‘special package’ being here but they hadn't given me enough information about it. I thought to myself, ‘Fine. The two I've been watching over a year are very powerful, older than most. And there's a monster stalking them, since I've been smelling the scent in the school halls so that's probably why camp was so frantic about getting them. But then you pop out for nowhere with no registration, health insurance or any sort of legal documents under your name- yet you're enrolled here. So tell me- are you the special package?”

The pain behind Jason’s eyes returned much worse than ever. Half-bloods, Camp, Monsters. He still didn't understand what Coach Hedge was talking about, but the words gave him a massive brain freeze- like he knew what those words mean but something or someone was blocking all knowledge about it.

He stumbled and the Coach caught. For a short man, he had arms of steel. “Woah, there, cupcake. You say you have no memories, right? Fine then, I'm gotta have to protect all three of you from this threat. Once the team arrives here, we get back to camp and I'll take you to the director.”

“What director? What is this camp?”

“Just hang tight. Reinforcements should be here soon. Hopefully nothing happens-”

Lighting cracked across the sky and the wind picked up speed with a vengeance. Worksheets and other kinds of papers flew into the Grand Canyon, and the entire bridge shuddered. Kids start screaming, stumbling around and grabbing onto the rails.

“Me and my big mouth.” Hedge grumbled. He bellowed into his megaphone: “Everyone Inside! The cow says moo!! Off the skywalk!”

“I thought you said this thing was safe!” Jason shouted, the wind drowning him out.

“Under normal conditions, yes,” Hedge agreed,”which this isn't. Come on!”

───────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────────

Taglist: @punkeropercyjackson @dontspillthefrijoles43 @puriteenism @aurantiumred @yawnwhatyadoing @emmidemi @justhereforthememesnangst

[hanasnx]

⿻ CHARACTER LIST — !

MINORS DNI 18+ ༄

"We want more than the wars of our fathers." — Switchfoot. (2003). Meant to Live.

TIP: bold is current favorites in which i respond to the quickest.

── characters ┆ EVERY CHARACTER I'VE EVER WRITTEN ON THIS BLOG (DOES NOT INCLUDE GIFTS).

dc comics ¡! ❞

✩ bruce wayne ✩ dick grayson ✩ terry mcginnis ✩ jason todd ✩ clark kent ✩ talon ✩ dr. manhattan ✩ oliver queen ✩ wally west ✩ j’onn j’onzz ✩ nanaue ✩ tim drake ✩ conner kent ✩ joker ✩ barry allen ✩ adrian chase ✩ lobo

marvel ¡! ❞

✩ peter parker ✩ venom ✩ hobie brown ✩ miguel o'hara ✩ tony stark ✩ logan howlett ✩ wade wilson ✩ harry osborn ✩ peter quill ✩ rocket raccoon ✩ the great protector

the boys ¡! ❞

✩ black noir ✩ soldier boy ✩ the homelander ✩ jordan li ✩ luke riordan

invincible ¡! ❞

✩ mark grayson ✩ nolan grayson ✩ rex splode

star wars ¡! ❞

✩ anakin skywalker ✩ darth vader ✩ han solo ✩ nd-5 ✩ plo koon ✩ din djarin ✩ general grievous ✩ cad bane ✩ boba fett

wizarding world ¡! ❞

✩ fred weasley ✩ remus lupin ✩ sirius black ✩ cormac mclaggen ✩ ron weasley ✩ george weasley ✩ harry potter ✩ james potter

movies misc. ¡! ❞

✩ indiana jones ✩ brian o'conner ✩ patrick bateman ✩ elton tiscia ✩ optimus prime ✩ jake sully ✩ charlie baker ✩ bernard the elf ✩ peter pevensie ✩ robert "moose" alexander iii ✩ warner huntington iii ✩ dave lizewski ✩ declan o'callaghan ✩ ransom drysdale ✩ james norrington ✩ aaron samuels ✩ regina george ✩ raizo

outer banks ¡! ❞

✩ jj maybank ✩ rafe cameron ✩ drew starkey

atla-verse ¡! ❞

✩ jet ✩ zuko ✩ korra ✩ mako

tv. shows misc. ¡! ❞

✩ jake peralta ✩ abed nadir ✩ troy barnes ✩ mordecai ✩ kevin levin ✩ dean forester ✩ christopher hayden ✩ dean winchester ✩ sam winchester ✩ kendall knight ✩ james diamond ✩ marshall lee ✩ jim halpert ✩ spencer reid ✩ aaron hotchner ✩ derek morgan ✩ garnet ✩ theo engler

jujutsu kaisen ¡! ❞

✩ toji fushiguro ✩ satoru gojo ✩ naoya zenin

boku no hero academia ¡! ❞

✩ katsuki bakugou ✩ taishiro toyomitsu ✩ toya todoroki

akatsuki no yona ¡! ❞

✩ hak ✩ kuelbo ying ✩ yu-hon

namaikizikari ¡! ❞

✩ shou naruse

manga misc. ¡! ❞

✩ riftan calypse ✩ yuushi totsumoto

mass effect ¡! ❞

✩ garrus vakarian ✩ nihlus kryik ✩ saren arterius ✩ urdnot wrex

video games misc. ¡! ❞

✩ sly cooper

christensen-verse ¡! ❞

✩ hayden christensen ✩ scott barringer ✩ leo campo ✩ sam monroe ✩ billy quinn ✩ clay beresford ✩ jacob ✩ stephen glass

rpf misc. ¡! ❞

✩ indy ✩ andy biersack ✩ corpse husband ✩ tom welling

── additional ┆ CHARACTERS I'D LIKE TO WRITE FOR.

✩ shoto todoroki ✩ dabi ✩ kai chisaki ✩ hitoshi shinso ✩ toshinori yagi ✩ yo shindou

✩ su-won ✩ shin-ha ✩ vold

✩ garnet

✩ jace herondale

✩ sinbad ✩ masrur

✩ tomoe ✩ kurama shinjirou

✩ sesshomaru ✩ koga

✩ bill cipher

✩ dan lynch

✩ nicholas devereaux

✩ eric knox

✩ sherlock holmes

✩ jack sparrow

✩ ned nickerson

✩ mike ross

✩ gregory eddie

✩ sam sweeney

✩ david rice

── gifts ┆ CHARACTERS I'VE WRITTEN GIFTS FOR AND DO NOT WANT MESSAGES ABOUT.

✩ luke skywalker ✩ carmy berzatto ✩ druig

NAVI | M.LIST | RULES | FAQ

[alaskan-wallflower]

Do you prefer the Musical versions of the characters or the movie versions?

Oh boy-I have controversial takes

Ponyboy

For Ponyboy? I prefer his movie version if we’re talking about them looking like their respective ages but I do use Brody’s Ponyboy a lot more because in most of my content Ponyboy is aged up (because I like to make headcanons and comics for post book) so I do like Brody’s version of Pony as a more aged up version, say 17-18. I do prefer his hair in the musical since it fits the “brown almost red hair” thing better So both? Like I like movie Ponyboy because he looks 14 but Brody’s Ponyboy is just so lovable. I can see Pony looking like that aged up tbh. Also C Tommy Howell’s constant RBF in the movie goes hard 😭

Sodapop

It’s touch to say honestly. I like them both? I enjoy Jason’s portrayal of Soda and I don’t recall much of Rob Lowe. The only thing I do wish is that they made his hair more blonde so it would stay more true to the book but that’s just me being nit picky in the end. I do prefer the outfit Rob wore, flannels just seem very Sodapip esque to me. The only thing I wish was different was the portrayal of Sofa in the musical since he seems to be too much of a womanizer honestly and while Soda is flirty I feel like there are other aspects of his personality they could’ve played up. That being did I do prefer Jason!

Darry

It honestly took me a while to warm up to Brent. Patrick Swayze is literally Darry. I prefer Brent’s voice more but Patrick just looks more Darry. That’s not to say I don’t like Brent as Darry-I love him as Darry! It just took me a little bit to warm up to him. I think I like him more as a prson though if that makes sense-Patrick looks the part more. Also I have some choice words about Darry’s portrayal in the musical; while he was more well rounded emotionally and didn’t feel like a robot, I can’t get over how mean they made him in the musical. Especially the line about Dallas “giving up” because he killed his elf. I get where he’s coming from but like…y’know?

Johnny

Movie Johnny has a special place in my heart. Younger me had the biggest and fattest crush on him I won’t even lie. He also just…looks more Johnny? Smaller and younger looking. Also just his voice sounded more Johnny than Sky-I do love Sky though! Live laugh love Sky, but I just prefer the way Ralph played Johnny. Sky’s voice is lovely though and I love how he portrays Johnny as more strong if that makes sense? Like Johnny is still strong and resilient, he’s just quiet and more jumpy than normal. And I kinda like that the musical made somewhat of an emphasis on this.

Dallas

Musical 100%. I’ve kinda always liked the headcanon of Dally being black and the gang being interracial. And Josh just looks and sounds SO much like Dally. I like that they made him more well rounded too-they gave him a more sympathetic side and emphasized some of his better qualities and while he still is a little shit, he’s just…not just there to be a tough hoodlum y’know? I also really love his relationship with Johnny and Pony, the whole little brother thing definitely feels really good. I’ve seen people be mad that the gang isn’t all white but like…I think that’s stupid. I prefer musical Dally tbh

Two Bit

Also musical. Daryl Tofa my beloved <333 He reminds me of Leo Valdez from the Percy Jackson books and I love it. I love his outfit. I love his tattoos. I love his laid back energy and his relationship with Soda in the musical. I wish he had more stage time tho-like I wish they gave him his own little bit of time because I seriously loved Teo Bit being a POC. I can’t tell what his ethnicity is (Hawaiian? Caribbean? Can someone help me out 😭) but whatever he is I love two bit thing like that

Steve

Honestly I dunno-Steve is such a minor character in the book, movie and musical that it’s hard for me to say. I’m gonna say both because Tom Cruise is just so doofy in the movie and musical Steve is barely in it enough for me to make a judgement. I didn’t even know it was Steve when I first saw the show tbh, I just thought it was a character they added like Ace.

Cherry

Musical. She seemed a lot more…well rounded in a way? I like that they made her stronger and able to stand up for herself. I don’t remember much on the movie but I LOVE Cherry in the musical and I would so hang out with her-also Emma Pittman I love you Emma Pittman

[coquettemouse]

i have 3 questoins

1 what art app or webside do you use? (im qurisous

2 what made you do art?

and 3 how did you come up with your jason and leo desince? i love them even tho mine are realy divrand!

(i hope that i did'nt sound mean or harch i dont know how to act around pepeol but i try to be nice vary hard!)

1 procreate and sometimes ibis paint

2 I've been drawing since I was a kid. What encouraged me to continue was when I was ten years old that a boy in the class (and also my crush) was known for drawing and I loved his art

3 I always imagined Jason as those big American guys from the TV and some rugby players I saw, and they all have this rugged but soft looks ykwm

4 They have very vague descriptions but that's how I worked:

Leo is described as baby-faced, elfin-looking, and "cute," so I assumed he had a rounder face and slightly higher cheekbones (because this is kind of a common thing in elf designs) but he also lived on the street, so he was still skinny.

Leo should also be the opposite of Jason, so that's important to me when drawing them. Jason has this serious and kind face, but with sad eyes, while Leo is always restless and with a hint of a smile that tells you that you should keep him away from knives.

To be quite honest I don't remember much of Jason's description, I had a general image of a big blond guy, not with defined muscles like he's a skinny guy who gained weight, but like he was a fat guy who maintains his weight low? I don't want his face to be too sharp, he doesn't look like the type. Some face references I have

For jason

For Leo

I think I rely more on players or celebrities to draw Jason than to draw Leo, after all Leo is closer to my reality than Jason is. Obviously I've drawn inspiration from one or two people I've seen in person to draw Jason, but pretty much everything about Leo is close to home in some way. Leo looks like a lot of people I know personally or from clay documentaries I used to watch with my grandfather

[raes-secret-pjo-account]

You are in love (chapter 3)

Nice to meet you, where ya been?

Jason's car breaks down and he goes to a certain mechanic (leo)

JASON

Hello. My name is Jason Grace. I am the son of a man named Jupiter who runs one of the biggest companies in the world. My mother is Beryl Grace she took care of my older sister Thalia. Thalia moved away when our mother died but she told me she is back in town so I was supposed to go meet her. My car broke down on the way there. I had already called a tow truck when I dialed Thalia's number.

The call went something like this:

"Hey Jason where are you?"

"Hi uh Thalia I might not be able to make it right now,"

"What?! Why are you okay?"

"I'm fine my car just broke down,"

"Oh then just fix it,"

"I don't know how to fix a car"

"What are they teaching you are boarding school!"

"Not mechanics,"

"Do you need me to come pick you up?"

"No I already called a tow truck,"

"Those cost money ya know,"

"You know I work for dad right?"

"How often do you see him?"

I didn't want to admit it but I rarely saw him at all. "Often enough. . ."

"Whatever, get back to me when you can and we'll meet up then kay?"

"Okay bye,"

Then Thalia hung up. When the tow truck finally came they asked me some questions and other stuff before letting my in the truck as they tow my car.

"So where do you want your car to go?" The driver asked me.

I thought about it for a moment, "the best mechanic you know please," I reply to which he chuckled a bit.

"Valdez it is," he said before continuing to drive.

We arrived at a garage that looked dirty and cheap. The sign at the top read VALDEZ but the bottom half of the L was falling off.

"Yo Leo I got a customer for you!" The driver yelled before I paid him and he left.

Then a scrawny boy came out from behind the garage. He looked like a Latino Santa's elf. He whisled in admiration when he saw my car, "woah, this is a nice car man, what year and model is it?"

"It's a 2022 and I don't really know my dad bought it for me," I replied which sounded kinda bad.

The boy just scoffed, "so your a spoiled rich brat, got it," he said inspecting the car some more.

I won't deny I am rich but I am certainly not spoiled. "I'm not spoiled," I snapped at him.

"Woah there," he put his hands up on defense his hands and the rest of him were covered in grease. "I'm just saying what I see. I'm sure you've had a very tragically hard life," he was joking but it wasn't funny to me.

Then a girls voice shouted, "Leo Valdez!"

"Ah fuck," the greasy boy sighed.

A girl walked in with her auburn hair in a pony tail her white shirt and jeans were also covered in grease. "You have other cars to work on what are you doing!" She yelled.

"Calypso, I'm just talking to a new customer, besides look at how cool this car is!" He said with excitement.

"I don't give a shit," she snapped, "finish those cars then work on this one!"

"Okay okay," he said defeated and he began to walk away.

The girl, Calypso sighed, "alright how may I help you," she asked brushing some of her hair out of her face.

"My car broke down on the side of the rode and I need it fixed," I explained to her.

"Alright let me get under it. You can wait over there if you want to sit somewhere," she pointed towards some chairs near a desk I'm assuming is the front desk. I gave her my keys and she drove the car to a spot in the garage.

I sat in the "waiting room" where I could see both sides of the garage. It was clear they split it in half cause Calypso's side was more neat and organized while Leo's had tools strewn about all over the place. I couldn't help but find myself watching Leo. He had music on while he worked, it was some old 80's song that he hummed along to. He worked with such precision, at least I think he did. I don't really know jack shit about cars.

Calypso came back, "one of your cylinders is busted up and your tires look like you've been hitting curbs for fun, you buy a cylinder and bring it here and we'll replace the part." She explained.

"Aren't you gonna fix it right now?" I asked a bit confused.

She sighed like I was dumb, "you gotta buy the part before we can fix it. Here call this number when you go the part okay," she said handing me a card with their number on it. I nodded.

Leo cam over, "hey Cal I-"

"stop calling me Cal,"

"okay well I finished that car can you take it for a test drive?" He asked.

Calypso was quick to respond, "why don't you take that car for a test drive to wherever he needs to go?"

Leo sighed and tapped my shoulder, "cmon rich bitch," he said jokingly. His comment reminded me of my ex girlfriend Piper. She broke up with me a month ago because she told me she is gay. I'm fine with that, we're still friends.

"My friend Piper always calls me that," I say as I get I to the passenger seat of this car. It's a Toyota pruis.

"No way I have a friend Piper too," Leo comments as he starts the car.

"So where are you headed?" He asked.

I thought about going to my house, the I thought maybe going to my work, then I remembered, "um can you take me to this park?" I ask showing him the address Thalia sent me earlier.

He shrugged, "weird place but okay,"

We began driving and after a bit of awkward silence he asks, "So why some random park?"

"Well I was supposed to meet my sister Thalia there." I explain.

"is she also a 'rich bitch'?" He asked jokingly.

"No actually, she lived with our mother who was really poor. After she died she still refused to move in with me and dad,"

Leo looked perplexed. "Well if she won't move in I might! I could buy so much useless shit with all that money," he teases and it makes me laugh. A real laugh. I don't think I can remember the last time I laughed like that. Leo. I didn't know him that well but not just anyone can make me laugh like that. I was willing to hold onto that.

We arrived at the park. "Thanks for the ride," I said leaning on the open car door smiling at him.

Leo smiled back "any time man," he the drove off.

I saw Thalia and another girl so I walked up to them. "Hey Thalia I made it," she looked at me.

"Good job," she said sarcastically. I looked over at the other girl she had invited instead of me.

"Hey your Reyna's sister right?" I asked. I knew Reyna from boarding school she and I were best friends but after I told her I wanted to be just friends she didn't talk to me again.

"Oh so you're jason," she said with a hint of distain. Was Reyna still mad at me? After all these years.

I shrugged it off and continued to chat with the both of them. I kept think about that guy from the mechanics. Leo, Leo valdez. He was weird in a charming way. I couldn't stop think about

☆ミ☆ミ☆ミ☆ミ☆ミ☆ミ☆ミ☆ミ☆ミ☆ミ☆ミ☆ミ

Chapter 1

[djuvlipen]

I've been re-reading the pjo and hoo books (guilty pleasure, and I'm trying to get back into reading again, so I'm starting small and familiar) and I'll preface and say that I'm white and could be making a big deal out of nothing, but I just saw your rick riordan criticism post and wanted to add that Leo being a 'spicy, flirty, fiery' latino stereotype with like, an occasional random spanish word thrown in was also not the best rep, imo (ik you can't mention every possible detail in a tumblr post, I just wanted to see if I'm the one being reactive here or if anyone else thought that)

oh no you're 100% right and this has always been a huge part of the criticism directed at rick. here are some good posts about it

also yeah all his latino characters come from abusive households ..

[somewhereincairparavel]

Angsty Jason prompt: dealing with Leo's death. And then the hurricane of emotions when Jason realized he wouldn't see his best friend again before he sacrificed himself for piper/apollo.

Author's note: I'm so sorry this took so long @obsessingoverl omg I was in a writer's block! But I hope you enjoy anyways, thanks for requesting :)

Every single fucking thing reminded Jason of him.

The fire crackling in Campfires.

The screwdrivers laying around on the table.

The Nintendo switch at the big house.

Even the food at camp half blood feasts.

Everything simply narrowed down to Leo Valdez.

Was this how it felt like to go insane? If that's the case, then Jason Grace had already crossed that path. He was beyond insane. His nightmares were plagued with images of the explosion that killed Leo Valdez. The booming noise, the burst of spreading flames that must've set Leo ablaze. Gods. Jason didn't want to think about it. But he realized that Leo died, the same way his mother had died too. Engulfed in flames.

So when Jason found out that he was going to die as well, in a few minutes in battle, he was hit with a wave of gut-wrenching emotions.

He was always hopeful that Leo was out there somewhere, screaming “I'm the bad boy supreme” grinning with his typical latino elf demeanor. He had always held on to the hope that Leo would come back riding on Festus, yelling “I GOT Y'ALL GOOD DIDN'T I?? Did ya miss me Superman??” That's just Leo on a normal day, and Jason would've curled up into a ball, cringing at his antics, albeit fondly. But right now? Jason would've killed for Leo to do that again.

He would've killed to be pranked by Leo again

He would've killed to play Mario party six on Nintendo switch in the big house with Leo again.

He would've killed to taste Leo's food again.

He would've killed to see Leo make random things out of metal as gifts, for Jason again.

He would've killed to listen to Leo's corny jokes again.

Recalling all of these things, Jason was hit with the realization that he would die, never getting to see Leo Valdez again.

But Jason had another thread of hope to hang on to, it was thin, but it was still there. If Leo was indeed dead, that means he's probably in Elysium, right? And if Jason dies too, then he'd also go to Elysium.. Jason would see Leo again after all, right?

Wrong.

After Jason Grace's death, He was judged in the fields of asphodel, and was sentenced to go to Elysium, Jason's soul was vibrating with excitement. Once he reached the golden paradise of Elysium, his soul floated around, yelling for Leo's name. He saw so many hero's spirits floating around in the Paradise, but where was Leo? For the love of Jupiter. Where. Was. Leo. Valdez?

Jason Grace realized, with a pang, looking at all these other drifting souls, that if his curly haired friend was not amongst them causing a ruckus, it could only mean one thing.

That Leo Valdez was alive after all. Jason had simply not lived to see him.

[impcrios]

( lorenzo zurzolo | cis-man | he/him ) — was that regulus black passing through diagon alley? those close to them say they remind them of an intricate tapestry of names and constellations, a family crest that’s starting to crack, a broken family that you don’t know how to live or even die for, a toppled pedestal of what you once believed in, a bittersweet memory of two small boys in grimmauld place’s garden, which i suppose seems to fit slytherin alumni. they’re actually pretty self-preserved, loyal, and intuitive for a twenty-two year old, but i wonder if it serves them well when working as unspeakable. rumor has it that the pureblood is aligning with the death eaters. i wouldn’t have guessed… but this is a conversation we should be having somewhere else.

name — regulus arcturus black nickname(s) — reg, reggie name meaning — regulus: little king. arcturus: watcher, gaurdian. black: dark. age — twenty-two date of birth — july 23nd star signs — leo sun, scorpio moon, cancer rising place of birth — london, england sexual orientation — homosexual religion — atheist spoken language(s) — english, french, german occupation — unspeakable education level  —  hogwarts, unspeakable apprenticeship  residence — grimmauld place family — orion black ( father ), walburga black ( mother ), sirius black ( brother ), kreacher ( his elf )  finances — when the wixen class war begins eat regulus first boggart — sirius dead patronus — if he were happy : hippogriff ( he doesn’t deserve this but i’ve done the stupid quiz numerous times and get the same results ) those with this unusual patronus are truly unique in character. people with the hippogriff are fiercely loyal to those who earn their trust, often willing to go the extra mile for those who they care for. if you have a friend with the hippogriff it is likely they are the most loyal to you above all others. those with the hippogriff patronus are often very proud and self assured. they do not forgive insults easily. occasionally this pride can drift into arrogance and cause friction with those around you. the characteristic which makes it so rare to find people with the hippogriff is the large heart. not many people have such a large loving heart as those with this patronus, something very special indeed. wand — laurel wand with unicorn hair 14 inches, hard flexibility, a wand belonging to a skilled witch or wizard who is likely to be precise, focused, and capable of powerful, controlled magic, with the laurel wood signifying a strong sense of purpose and the unicorn hair core providing consistent and loyal magical output.

tw: i mean he's a death eater with death eater views , brief mention of drowning

while not the eldest nor the heir to the house of black regulus knows all about taking up the mantle and what it means to take up duties that should have gone to his older brother. if he thinks about it too much he swears that the rumoured black madness might actually be real. regulus’ mind was wired different, he used to think, at least. if it weren’t for family pride, he might have settled well in ravenclaw. but the thing about regulus is that he loves his family too much to ever truly swing any other way than towards his true north ( which has always been the house of black ). even still, regulus has always looked back for his brother, and if he couldn’t find him he’d look to the stars. 

regulus was a quiet boy growing up, he loved his alone time in grimmauld garden, often calling sirius to come look at the pretty flowers that were blooming, and if sirius didn’t come then he’d call for kreacher, who he loved. 

when he had gotten a toy broom for his birthday he knew that it would be one of his outlets for when the world seemed too much. regulus enjoyed flying he thought about how when he would go to hogwarts how perhaps sirius and him would be on the same team. while regulus never said he loved his brother growing up he would always show it in actions. talking about their future together, because there was no way that there wouldn’t be one without the other, regulus saw the whole world in sirius’s eyes. their family was always about loyalty and he was always loyal to his brother. 

things changed when sirius left to hogwarts, and was put in a different house. he thinks that was the start of the change within their family. regulus had always been self aware of himself, if not been drilled in by their parents growing up, he knew that he couldn’t do what his brother did. 

so, he did everything right. the only real indulgence he gave himself in hogwarts was being on the quidditch team. he became prefect and headboy, and attended every single slug club party and schmoozed his way into an easy apprenticeship with the unspeakables. regulus yearned for knowledge, but more so yearned for secrets that he could never tell. 

the first stirrings of the dark lord intrigued him. regulus might have been a calm and gentle child growing up but his love for knowledge and power called to him. while always on the outside looking in, he doesn’t fully trust voldemort, but regardless of whether he trusts him his name holds power and regulus has always been interested in looking at powerful men’s weakness. 

so far, the dark lord has found regulus favourable, he says things about regulus being the youngest death eater with the mark on his arm. forever branded by a mad man. 

regulus is not a good person, he still holds his pureblood views while also being such a contradiction in himself. he thinks that he knows himself well but he doesn’t even realize how utterly lost he is. there are some days when he thinks that he’d betray his mother and father for sirius, while thinking the next that kreacher and regulus will escape somewhere very far away together, but as it stands now : regulus is to be betrothed, have an heir, and carry on the black name. the perfect son, heavy on his shoulders of things that should have gone to his brother if he had stayed. 

quietly, he thinks that this is the gift that he could give his brother was freedom. the weight off his shoulders to carry on the noble house of black. 

in the end it won’t end up mattering much anyway. 

if regulus had any last thoughts, he would have thought of his brother, and all the time they did have together, how he should have cherished it more. there’s a memory of them in grimmauld place garden, calling to sirius because he wanted him there, just to hold his hand, his eyes ever searching for kreacher to hold his other hand. his favourite people. 

regulus, like icarus, flies too close to the sun – doomed to fail, and much like icarus, he drowns. 

his father has recently died and he’s been struggling with that becoming the new master of the house.

( wanted connections. )