#every member of this friend group should have a scene where they watch hunter be horribly mentally unwell for a minute or so

[pandoratheprocrasticreator]

i sincerely hope the montage in the clip is just bits of full scenes edited together and not an actual montage in the episode because hunter cutting his hair feels like it should be bigger than a two second clip in the middle of a montage in the first 5 minutes of the episode.

if willow helps hunter cut his hair in an extended scene then maybe she can finally witness one of hunter’s trademark mental breakdowns where zeno robinson goes off the shits on the mic. luz, amity, and gus already saw him have one each. let willow have a turn

[delimeful]

to taste your beating heart (4)

warnings: nightmares, flashbacks, mind control/thrall mention, mental breakdown, blood mention, impalement/staking, upsetting thoughts, panic, ptsd responses

-

A plastic-sounding click, like someone pressing a button.

Anx took a breath, staring intently at the person bustling around across from him.

Patton was making tea like someone vying for a professional butler position: setting saucers and cups in front of each of them, managing the teapot with a steady hand, motions smooth and automatic.

“Sorry, I’m just so used to setting up refreshments for guests,” he chuckled nervously. “My sister always insists on tea when she comes by, so—“

Logan shifted next to him, impatient and more than a little irritated after every one of his inquiries had been deflected or outright ignored. Patton had invited them in, though, and he was currently their best lead on one of the most vicious cases they’d ever dealt with.

Even if he seemed utterly incapable of answering any of their actual questions.

That wasn't saying he wasn't willing to talk at all. Roman was chattering with him, their most sociable member easily drawn into discussion and more than willing to natter on in the hopes that Patton would let some vital information slip.

Anx wasn’t the only one who noted the way their host set an extra saucer and cup out, but when he met Logan’s gaze, the hunter only rolled his eyes, more than content to dismiss it as another element of the stranger’s apparent airheaded personality.

Patton was still speaking, discussing the many alleged merits of ignoring allergies for the sake of fulfilling experiences. Roman, who was lactose intolerant, was nodding along wholeheartedly. Logan, who was the one to deal with Roman’s post-dairy consumption whining, looked a lot less agreeable.

His own attention remained pinned on Patton’s movements rather than his words. There was a pattern there, a careful turn of the cup so the handle was facing the right side, lift the teapot from the warmer, and pour. One by one, he went around the table.

Anx was the only one watching when the man finally fumbled. After pouring each of their cups with surprising grace, he reached that final, fifth teacup. He twisted the handle so it was right-aligned, lifted the teapot, poured— and then reached for what looked like a cream pitcher.

A beat late, Patton’s hands suddenly swerved to the side, and he pulled them back as though he’d been burned. His voice didn’t even falter.

Anx reached across the table lightning-quick and seized the pitcher, knocking a few of the porcelain jars over and effectively cutting through the conversion as he did. Roman was asking something, but Patton only stared at him, something both fearful and grateful in his gaze.

Anx pulled the lid off, and the thick smell of blood hit him, like iron and rust.

“Your sister, you said?” Logan asked, and Patton bit his lip hard enough to bleed.

Click.

He was in a different room of the same tiny apartment, though it took him a moment to recognize the interior.

Put bluntly, it looked as though a miniature hurricane had torn through it.

The wallpaper was shredded and splattered. The cute decorative furniture had been thrown askew at best, smashed to bits at worst. Everything was in disarray, the valuable and mundane targeted indiscriminately. An entire life torn to pieces.

In the eye of the storm, Patton stood, hands fisted in his hair and eyes bloodshot.

They’d known the backlash of the bond breaking would be hard on Patton, but they hadn’t been prepared for this. It was entirely possible that they had never run into a thrall this strong, one maintained for so long, in their entire hunting career.

Most aggressive thralls would attack relentlessly to defend their master from harm. Seeing as they’d been the ones to kill his “sister”, if Patton was going to vent his ire on anyone, it would be them. Roman stepped forwards carefully regardless, knowing that they owed it to him to at least try to help him recover. “Patton?”

“I should have helped her,” he replied tonelessly, voice half-ruined from screaming. He picked up a broken chunk of a table leg, and they all went tense, but all he did was slam it against the wall.

“I should have saved her!” he cried, punctuating every word with a swing. “Where is she, where is she, what did I do to her?”

“A better question would be: what did she do to you?” Logan asked, ignoring the sharp look Anx sent his way. They’d all been unsettled at the way the vamp had talked about Patton, like someone possessive over a favored plaything, but that didn’t mean they should be bringing it up now.

They’d finally gotten Patton’s full attention, as he turned to them with angry tears in his eyes. “She did everything for me! And I— I gave her away, I betrayed her…”

“She was hurting people,” Anx cut in, voice firm but not unkind. For all that he’d been through, Patton didn’t deserve unkind.

“I could have fixed it, I thought I was— I was getting through to her,” he pleaded, his voice unsteady and unconvincing even to himself. He dropped the wood, pressing bleeding knuckles against his face to stem the tears.

“It’s not your fault, Patton, okay?” Roman tried, stepping closer until he could reach out and set his hand on a trembling shoulder. Patton only seemed to bow further with the weight of his grief.

“Giving her up was supposed to kill me,” he said softly, the frenzy gone from him. “How am I supposed to live without her?”

“The same way everyone else does,” Roman pulled him in for a hug, his own eyes wetter than they’d been before. “One day at a time.”

Click.

The living room of the house— their house.

Perhaps more importantly, the smell of something burning.

Anx had always been twitchy about things like this-- a thousand potential disasters in mind for every little inconvenience-- so he bolted off the arm of the couch the moment the scent registered.

When he got to the kitchen, he heard the rattle of an active microwave, saw Patton standing and staring blankly at the display as the inside of the microwave clouded up with smoke.

Cringing at the thought of the smoke alarm going off, he turned on the overhead fan and pulled the window up before finally yanking the microwave door open.

A plastic takeout container was halfway to a melted puddle, mixing with whatever leftovers had formerly resided there. He slid on a pair of duck-themed oven mitts and grabbed the most solid-looking parts, quickly lifting and carrying the mess to the balcony where it could cool down without making their house smell like burnt plastic.

When he returned, Patton was still in that same spot, frowning slightly as though just realizing that something might be a little off. Like someone had pressed pause while the world fast-forwarded around him, Patton had described it once.

Anx flitted about for a moment, putting the mitts back and cleaning the leftover residue, and then finally faced his friend with a wry half-smile. Patton’s eyes snapped to him, as though just realizing he was there.

“Hey, Pat.” He reached out and set his hand against Patton’s back, watching as the touch helped ground him slightly. “Can you go sit at the table? I’ll bring us both something to eat.”

Without a word, Patton turned and walked to their little dining table.

Cooking was admittedly harder when he ducked away to check on the other room every few moments, but he managed alright, only singeing the eggs slightly where Roman would have incinerated them.

He set the table for them both, and sat across from Patton, who was motionless and quiet in his chair.

“Can we eat together?” Anx asked, offering Patton a fork so there was a physical prompt as well as a verbal one.

It took a moment, but Patton gripped the fork easily and started to work through the motions of eating, mirroring Anx. Whenever he faltered or seemed to forget what he was in the middle of, Anx would nudge his attention back on track.

Once they were finished, he gathered up his dishes and asked Patton to grab his, carrying them back to the kitchen together.

Patton paused for a moment at the sink, mouth twitching into a frown as he stared at his glass and the lingering layer of orange juice at the bottom.

“Does anyone want tea?” he asked suddenly, a well-practiced line in a cheery tone. “I’m very good at tea service, you know.”

Anx swallowed the lump in his throat. “I’m good, Pat,” he declined instead of pointing out that they didn’t have any tea in the house.

Patton seemed to get a little hazier, his face going sad and then quickly lax again. Anx took the glass from him and offered him a hand to hold instead, squeezing his palm comfortingly when he accepted.

“I need help out in the garden today. Do you think you could lend a hand or two?”

He dipped his head in a nod, and as they made their way to the back door, Anx shot a text off to the group chat.

> nightmare on edge street: out in the garden with pat. bad day protocol, stat

When they came back in hours later, dirt under their nail beds and probably a little sunburned, Roman and Logan had already combined their talents to set up an elaborately decorated but still structurally sound blanket fort spanning the entirety of the living room.

Patton’s face twitched into a tremulous little smile as the others waved them over, and Anx felt him squeeze their joined hands gratefully.

Click.

The sequence rewound, restarted. Ran him through it over and over, the same scenes-- the same memories. Patton pouring tea with a determined, terrified glint to his eye. Patton’s mind struggling under the stress of the snapped bond. Patton working through a difficult day with the help of friends.

The scenery grew brighter and brighter with every repetition, like saturation turned all the way up on a screen, until they were as painful as sunlight on his bare skin. He tried to close his eyes, to move away, to change something, anything, but his body wasn’t his own.

Look at him, it seemed to demand, keeping him frozen in a sensory hell. Pay attention. Look what you did. Understand how you hurt him.

Click. Click. Click. Click. Click.

Clunk.

Silence. The memories vanished, leaving him floating in an impossible, endless black space. Between one blink and the next, he was eye-to-eye with a mirror image, something about it just slightly off.

He didn’t notice the stake in its hand until it was too late.

---

Anx jerked upright, hands jumping to his chest as the phantom sensation of wood between his ribs faded. His breath stuttered painfully, as though he expected to feel ichor welling up in his mouth any minute.

Staking a vampire was an archaic hunter method. It was difficult to manage, it was messy, and it was the slowest and most painful way possible to kill a vampire. He knew this, though he wasn’t sure which life was providing the facts.

Regardless of memories, he couldn’t know how it felt to actually be staked. He’d been injured before, with a coven as temperamental as his, but nothing like that. Nothing even close to that. It was just a bad dream, an imagined pain.

There was a subtle shifting nearby, and his head snapped up, eyes bright and teeth bared. If those assholes thought he was in the mood to have his space invaded--

“Easy, Count Chocula.” Across the room, the sword-wielder-- Roman, that was his name-- settled back into the armchair by the door, watching him with narrowed eyes. “I was simply noticing your… abrupt awakening?”

Right. Because he wasn’t settled into one of the tiny, dark rooms reserved for the newly-turned and those who couldn’t shake off the urge to sleep. He was captured by weird hunters, who trapped him in their weird house, and asked weird invasive leading questions about his weird night terrors.

He was also tucked into a bed, for some reason.

The comforter had already slipped down halfway due to his sudden jolt into wakefulness, and he wasted no time in kicking free of the sheets. The room was surprisingly dark in both theme and lighting, with deep purple walls and heavy spiderweb-patterned curtains blocking out any potential sunlight.

There was also a warding circle of ash carefully smudged in a perimeter around the bed, the burning containment runes strong enough to make him want to sneeze even from this distance. The diameter of the circle was wide enough that he could theoretically keep away from any stabbings if he pissed Roman off enough, but add even one more hunter to the mix and it would take virtually no effort to pincer him.

Nothing he could do about the new cage for now, with the hunter staring at him expectantly from his sentry position. He sent a poisonous glare back and hissed, still crouched on the bed like an exceptionally angry gargoyle.

Roman pressed an offended hand to his chest, but was cut off by an inordinately cheerful knock at the door. His expression flickered to a sort of bitter resignation, and he shot Anx a much more serious warning look before unlocking and cracking the door open.

“Hey, Pat! I thought you were taking a nap?” he asked with impressively feigned lightness to his voice.

“I was, I just— Is he awake?” Another too-familiar voice replied, sounded distracted. “I felt…”

“Yeah, Padre,” Roman admitted after a strained pause. “He’s up. You remember your key?”

“Of course!” Patton said, and neither of them elaborated on what the hell that was supposed to mean. Roman stepped aside, and Patton beelined to the bed like a compass needle to true north.

He stopped just short of the circle, like a determined enough— or cornered enough— vamp couldn’t reach out and drag him in. “Anx! I’ve been so worried about you! You took quite a tumble, are you feeling alright?”

Anx stared at him. The words were bright, but there was a thread of something fervent and barely-controlled in them, something frenetic in the way he shifted from foot to foot. It sent a pervasive feeling of wrongness down his spine, like looking at an old photograph and realizing that something you remembered from it was entirely absent.

Anx didn’t— couldn’t know enough about Patton to recognize when he was acting off, but every piece slotted neatly into place anyways, dragging him to a conclusion he didn’t intend to realize; Patton was pretending, ignoring the parts of him that felt bad to reassure the rest of them. After everything he'd already gone through, he was bearing the stress of being thralled without a word.

He could feel the thrall tether pulled taut between them, already mentally frayed from both the time passed since feeding and the pain that had ricocheted through him at his last order. Looking at Patton like this, it was bizarrely easy to loosen his grip and let that last thread connecting them fall apart.

Patton’s shoulders eased, all of him sagging slightly like a puppet with strings cut. And wasn’t that just an uncomfortably accurate metaphor.

In the next moment, the hunter was stepping neatly over the line of ash and into the circle, arms lifted. Roman shouted something, but his alarmed words were meaningless noise against the roar of anticipatory fear that overcame Anx.

Get away, his instincts screamed, but his body remained stuck, stalled by a resentful whisper in the back of his mind: Doesn’t he deserve to get a few hits in though? Look at what you did to him.

A sudden touch made him curl in on himself, but the arms that folded around him were careful, even gentle. His head jerked up, and sure enough, Patton was hugging him. He froze, struck dumb.

Over Patton’s shoulder, Roman was stopped a few feet away, hand outstretched as though he’d planned to yank Patton back out of the danger zone. Anx met his stare, eyes round as quarters.

“I did not tell him to do this,” he blurted, and Patton’s chest vibrated with a little sniffly chuckle. The human was so warm.

At the door, Logan appeared, glasses slightly askew. “Patton? I heard—“

He paused, taking in the room. His expression grew more and more unimpressed. “... I see. Exactly what happened while I was away?”

[anime-onlys]

Spring '21 anime list: What I tried, what I'm watching, and first impressions!

Shaman King (2021)

I hadn't heard about this show until the reboot was announced, and it seems neat so I'll give it a shot! Hesitation isn't quite the right word, but I am watching cautiously because there's a lot about early 2000's anime that should stay in the early 2000's. I'm prepared to take a certain amount of product-of-its-time-ness, but only so much.

I really like its unique visual style. It feels like it's got a similar vibe to Soul Eater and TWEWY with its chunky proportions and face design, and the squash-and-stretch animation really lends itself to comedic moments. I feel like there are some eminently cosplayable designs in my future.

Character-wise, it's only been one episode but I'm taking a liking to Yoh. Based on the OP I hope that Ryuu will be an early-antagonist-turned-loudmouth-friend like JJBA's Okuyasu or Sk8's Shadow. That's one of my favorite character tropes.

The World Ends With You the Animation

My friend is a huge TWEWY fan, so our group was really looking forward to this anime. I saw a little of the gameplay when the Switch version was released, up to the end of episode 1's plot. I know it's going to be excellent story wise, and I already may be planning on making cosplay of that Reaper with the skeleton hoodie.

I love a unique visual style and an awesome soundtrack, of course TWEWY already had that coming in. The CGI Noise are a little clunky, but allow for some really great fight sequences. The characters' CGI models are nearly seamless with the 2D. It feels like the plot is moving fast, but according to my friend they just skipped some fetch quests and puzzle solving that wouldn't have been interesting to animate.

I'm really looking forward to this one each week!

Dragon Goes House-Hunting

One of those "eh, we'll give it a shot" shows. A bunch of us have been eyeing real estate lately, so at the very least it's topical. If done right, the concept could be fun!

We spent most of the episode HATING the dragon's character design. Its proportions are just...awkward in every way. The neck is extremely short and thick and leads into a human-muscled torso, the arms are tiny twigs, and the legs are a little too human and a little too thick to be anything but unnerving. It's bad.

Oddly, except for the dragon, the rest of the creature designs are pretty great! In contrast to a lot of anime, they let them be really non-human and had a good design sense. The humor was solid, the Monster Hunter references were on point, and the character interactions were fun. The OP is GREAT, too!

We'll be continuing this one! If you can make your eyes stop hating you for forcing them to look at the Monster Factory reject of a dragon, I'd say give it a shot.

You Can Make A Mug Too

Now that Yuru Camp is over, we wanted another lighthearted anime that might teach us something while it's at it. You Can Make A Mug Too was one of our picks to sample because one member of anime night has recently acquired a kiln.

My impression is an approving but unenthusiastic "Fine, really." You can definitely tell it's an anime made to bring in tourism to the town it's based in. The characters don't really grab me, but they set up a solid emotional backbone for the story. The production quality isn't stunning, I was hoping for some nice pottery wheel animation but didn't get any.

It's probably a decent show, but we won't watch any more because of the next one on the list.

Supercub

Going straight from You Can Make A Mug to Supercub was like going from store-brand ice pops to fresh gelato. I can already tell this is my favorite anime of the season, hands down.

First, the production quality is excellent. The backgrounds are beautiful, the score is understated but well done to the point that Debussey's Clair de Lune felt like it had been made for the scene it was used for.

More than the production quality alone, this anime's direction is exceptional. It takes 'show don't tell' and uses it perfectly, using body language and soundtrack and shot composition to communicate as much or more than the sparse dialogue. Like, they made my heart skip a beat with nothing but color grading. THAT kind of exceptional.

I haven't spoken much about the plot because I really have no idea where it's going to go. Will we fill in why Koguma is so alone, or will we only move forward to seeing her connect? Will the past of that Supercub come back to haunt her? This feels like an anime that can and will absolutely wreck me, but at the starting line all I can say is I'm READY.

If you only watch one thing this season, watch Supercub.

Continuing anime:

My Hero Academia Season 5:

This season is interesting because for the first time, I think I'm going into it with almost zero spoilers (Dabi's real name is the only one I have). The only plot spoiler I thought I had, that Hawks was somehow working with the League of Villains, was revealed at the end of episode 1. I really enjoy going into things blind so I'm looking forward to this season!

However, the OP is the most disappointing thing out there. Nothing about the song, animation or composition is memorable or even noteworthy. Bones and MHA have access to all the money and talent in the industry and they best they can do is "Fine, I guess".

Yuukoku no Moriarty season 2 (Split cour):

I really enjoyed Moriarty's first season, but the second part of a split-cour always has the risk of running off the rails. What I enjoyed most about the first cour was the reverse-whodunit formula: Here's a terrible noble and the people they hurt, how does Moriarty get rid of them while making it look like an accident? The end of cour 1 started to focus heavily on Sherlock and I don't want the show's namesake to end up sidelined.

Knowing Irene was coming, I was really hoping for a Scandal in Belgravia that follows the books...at all, where the end of the story is that Irene escapes with the photo (except this time aided by the Moriarty brothers). Few or no Sherlock adaptations actually want to engage with the sexism of the era or today's, and just want to paint her as a blackmailer or temptress instead of a woman holding onto the power to protect herself. The beginning was extremely promising, but that went off the rails pretty quick. I still haven't yet seen an adaptation of Irene Adler that I like.

Zombieland Saga: Revenge

I watch this show because it's fun and ridiculous, and I get to hear Mamoru Miyano having the time of his life in the recording booth. I love this show because it always ends up surprising me with its solid emotional backbone. It looks like this season is shaping up to be more of the same!

What blew me away was this episode was the first time I saw a CGI dance sequence that I LIKED. Ever. The characters used different mocap so they weren't eerily in sync, the song and dance itself was well made and supported by excellent camera direction and shot composition, there were 2D cuts to closeups of the dancers as well as audience, and they actually pushed facial expression!

It's a good time. Give it a shot.

[soysaucecas]

oooh for the ask game 24, 30, and 44!

MAGPIE MY BELOVED HELLO

24. What are your favorite episodes?

The only episodes I've really watched are TMWWBK (which is my favorite episode and I'm certain would still be my favorite if I watched every single one because it has the only SPN character and the only SPN line), The French Mistake (which was funny enough but honestly in the Just Okay category for me, which makes me pretty sure I wouldn't enjoy actually watching SPN if this is one of the funniest/highest-rated eps), and Reading Is Fundamental (my best friend was watching it and asked me if I wanted to hop on Discord, I thought it might be fun to see Kevin's first introduction but instead this ep found the two of us taking like 90 minutes to get through it bc we kept pausing and screaming (derogatory) as the model minority stereotype jokes piled up and up and up... Unfortunately not a favorite even if we got Meg AND the "pull my finger" joke AND the "Sorry" shot). Other than TMWWBK, from clipping and transcript-reading, I like Wayward Sisters (who doesn't?), The Things We Left Behind (Claire!!!! Cas trying to be a dad! The diner scene aka my favorite destiel scene of all time bc being in love just looks so good on Cas! Also the parallels between Claire and Randy and teen Dean and the adults at that club in his story... woof.), Golden Time (Eileen gets to be HERE and be sad and loved and fight people with ghost powers and Cas gets to do a cool speech and a stabbing and do the Asian community a favor), and Lucifer Rising (just immensely sexy on all counts for Ruby, Sam, Cas, and myself). Also I am SO fond of Steve!Cas so I'll add Heaven Can't Wait even if I barely know anything about it.

30. What is an unpopular opinion or headcanon you have about the show?

Ooh okay hm I think. So I adore confession scene, but I don't think the "I cared about the whole world because of you" is like. The Objective Truth the way that most bloggers seem to take it. Cas was lobotomized tons of times before he met Dean, he was described as coming off the line with a crack in his chassis, he's always been the weird little angel who likes humanity too much! I don't think Dean came first, and although gay love was part of what helped Cas invent free will, he *Ruby voice* didn't need the feather to fly, Dumbo! I do think Cas believes what he says in the moment, but I also think he sorta... made himself believe it? This is probably just me deciding that cas-coding should go both ways, but like. I very much crush as a coping mechanism and I very much overascribe my actions to love because it simply seems more noble/poetic to do so. Being miserable because school is hard is cringefail but being miserable because of unrequited love is Good Shit. And I have been in unrequited love with my best friend for at least 7 years (probably 9 but I didn't realize it earlier) and if you asked I would 100% say that she taught me love and defined love for me and that she will be my first and last, but I also know that that is not entirely true; it's just the narrative that I like for myself. And I think that being in an Empty deal contingent on whether or not he LETS himself feel happy would lead Cas to do plenty of mental maneuvering, which I think involved intentional self-poor-little-meow-meow-ification via overascribing his choices and happiness to Dean (and I also think he'd already been doing that for a while just because of personal self-worth issues and because it's a nice narrative). I know as Cas's last Moment on the show it was probably written to be The Objective Truth, but I am perceiving him and I say no.

44. If you could write an episode of Supernatural, what would happen?

Oh scream okay! This is a fun one! I am going to start out with two ideas from other people:

1. Months ago Nate from the pocnatural discord had the idea of an episode from the "monster"'s perspective where the Winchesters are just clearly the antagonists while not doing anything different than they usually do. I think the idea was that all these supernatural beings live in a self-regulating community together and we have one Very Likable pov character who's a member of this community, but one of the newer members messes up one day and kills someone and the Winchesters come on a case and wreak havoc on this Very Much Functioning (there was going to be a whole rehab and reparations thing for the new member who messed up!) system and kill pov character and in the end you just HATE Sam and Dean for it.

2. It's hard to adapt anything from bad moon rising (aka my favorite spn fic) very well because the point of an Arab Winchesters season 1 rewrite is that it doesn't really work with the white characters we have now, but I think I could see a version of chapter 2 adapted as long as Haley (an Ojibwe hunter who lives in the area affected by what Sam and Dean are hunting) takes the lead. I'd especially like to see this section:

Dean laughs, a little disbelievingly. The question has never crossed his mind. “Do you like it?”

This gives Haley no pause at all. “Yeah,” she says. “I mean, it’s not really about killing monsters, though, for me. Or, it’s not always about killing monsters. It’s about community. Not violence. It’s a spiritual thing to build a home, you know?”

“Oh,” Dean says. He can’t think of anything else to say. It has never crossed his mind before that hunting could be compatible with a community.

I don't have any original episode ideas to add to the hunting discourse, so we're on to my ideas about character-driven eps. I think I would like to see a version of my sastiel possession fic (ty again for beta-ing that! you're a real one) as an ep around the time of 9.11 because Sam deserves to work through their trauma, but idk what the Dean plot should be for that. Another thing I would like very much is TFW drunk history storytime (so like. Tall Tales bass boosted), where for some reason they all need to go over what they were doing during Stanford era but each of them is telling someone else's story. It's gonna be either Sam->Dean->Cas->Sam or Dean->Sam->Cas->Dean. It starts out very funny (they all have terrible wigs and makeup in the flashbacks. Cas is Jimmy wearing a giant mask with googly eyes on it.) but as it goes on it gets increasingly sad how much these three don't really know each other.

In the Sam->Dean->Cas->Sam episode, Sam's telling of Dean's past veers wildly between "crushing pussy and killing things" and "feels like absolute shit all the time" and it's funny but Not Right and afterwards Dean goes "I didn't know you thought of me that way" and Sam says "... I am basically reading off the voicemails you left me back then" and Dean has to sit there and contend with the mythology he himself wrote for Sam to believe in. Dean->Cas provides the comedic beats for the episode as Dean awkwardly narrates Cas's Life As A Weird Little Guy who watches trees grow and heals babies and in the end Dean goes "so how did I do" and Cas is like "well actually I was either getting lobotomized or murdering people so like 3/10?" The moral of this plot line is that Dean is bi. Cas gives a fairly faithful retelling of Sam living her trans little life at Stanford and veering between trying to be Normal and being a total weirdgirl and feeling guilty and angry and happy and free. It becomes clear that Cas admires Sam a lot (but also feels like. guilt and some self-recrimination for not being that) for rebelling from their dad and exploring their queerness during a time Cas was still to his knowledge in total soldier mode, and Sam is having an a_good_soldier's Thesis 5 moment about how she failed the kid she used to be and how very sorry they are about all the things that happened to them, and Dean hates that this is the first he's hearing about so much of this but is also quite emo about the parts where Sam is struggling. The ep ends with them all in the same room not looking at each other and not knowing if they want to group hug or never talk again.

Dean->Sam->Cas episode is similar but the storytelling dissolves a lot faster as it becomes clearer way faster how much their own emotions are getting in the way. Dean is upset that Sam could leave their family so easily and probably swing a normal life, Sam keeps wondering what it would be like to live millennia just KNOWING that you were right and good and clean, and Cas is gay and veering between fitting Dean's life into a larger Righteous Man narrative and just being very tender (and sad and angry) about Dean's pain. Episode ends in a rather cathartic shouting match where they all end up apologizing to each other for many things.

Oh also I would like to see Cassie again but I don't have an episode in mind there. Also would love to see Kaia adjusting to life in Sioux Falls and befriending the others and dealing with Bad Place trauma.

tysm for the questions sorry for taking so long!

(ask game)

[ivytorn-blog1]

LANA CONDOR, CIS-WOMAN, SHE/HER, HUNTER   /   deep in the pacific northwest lives IVY MAI LE. i heard they’ve been living there for four years and last saw them hanging around the rough draft, i think they might’ve been pouring drinks while listening in on conversations. at twenty two years old, ivy doesn’t look a day over twenty two. everyone around here always associates them with leather bound books, hidden in the back of the shelf; scars beneath delicate flowers and patterns in ink-covered skin; and the final sharp inhale before one tells a deadly secret. hope they enjoy their stay ! ( cami, gmt, she/her, 19 )

TW: DEATH, BLOOD, SCARS, SELF-HARM (or sorts)

I.

a family of refugees, the le had a long established reputation back home as the brave protectors of mankind, nomads stopping at every village and small town to valiantly step into the darkness and return with a token of the evil ailing the populace. with very little collaboration with other hunting families, they kept extensive tracks of lore, written and verbal, passed down through generations - thus, the accounts they now possess are a mix of superstition, old wisdom and rare experiences. it is well known that if a hunter is looking for out-of-the-box ways to defeat a target, the le’s knowledge might be of use. 

ivy is part of the first generation of her family to be born in the united states, their new hunting ground since the 1960s. for the most part, they’d stuck together, leaving only to marry into other families or to join prestigious groups. their status had carried over to their new country, and their skills only consolidated the fact that the le were a family one would wish to keep as close friends within the hunting community. 

born on the 17th of december, 1976, in modesto, california - but soon the moving began. the le carried a philosophy of self-protection and search for better targets, one that involved moving at least once a year, hopefully with no tracks behind to be followed. staying for a few months, every family member who was able to work did, gathering funds for the next expeditions and better gear. to reach a le, one had to actively search for them. 

this led to ivy having no formal education. under the official guise of homeschooling, she, her siblings and cousins learned the basics of mundane education: writing, reading, easy maths. everything else was done in a militaristic setting and specialized in the trade they’d pick up as soon as they were deemed ready. survival skills, botany, lore, interrogation, fighting, shooting. nurturing friendships outside of he family was a hard task, but ivy was up for it anyway (mostly during the final weeks of being in the same location, when the house felt too small and her cousins too annoying,and she sported a bleeding nose from fighting her siblings). the instinct to look to the outside world was always there, even if just as relief from the suffocation of her family. however, she’d eventually be on the move, and never allowed to send letters or telephone anyone afterwards. 

ivy was the classical middle child. with two older brothers and two younger siblings, she was often found trying to sneak into the back of the trucks leaving for hunting missions, because if miles, only 6 years older, could accompany the grown ups, so should she. in other occasions, she played the role of the instructor, throwing knives with the youngest, assuming herself the leader of the family, the great wise one - of course, until there was blood and crying and she was grounded. other times, though, she was hidden behind doors, listening to conversations she wished to take part in, but never close enough to be allowed to. a constant feeling of being on the edge of proving her greatness, but never seen enough for that. one such occasion came at the time to flee to oregon. 

her family has been focusing on werewolves for the past 15 years, ever since a particularly bad encounter left a few relatives dead ingruesome ways. they will hunt everything else, even if that means they must join forces with other groups for better results, but werewolves have become quite the specialization. eight years ago, down in southern california, the family began a war they did not intend to wage by angering a particularly big pack with what was considered brutal unjust killings. the le found themselves as the targets, in a mess most other hunters refused to touch out of their own preservation - instead, they help set up routes for the le to leave, far away from the pack. pride got in the way, but all that bravado wouldn’t make winning any easier - only when the eldest son, miles, only twenty years old, was violently murdered did the family pack up.

II.

miles was a promising hunter, nearly as skilled with a gun as his father - but then it was all gone. the family had to regroup, grieve and, above all, reestablish their image. 

up until then, ivy had already begun going on missions (simply watching when she was ten, helping at twelve, full member of the team by fourteen) but it all changed after miles’ death. the narrative wasn’t that their children weren’t well protected, but rather that they were unprepared. when they handed her six year old cousin a knife and rope, she understood. the new goal was to make them not impressive soldiers but the best, as soon as possible. there was no space for slip-ups.

ivy’s mother has a reputation especially for interrogations. in order to grow their lore books or purely to get information on other targets, her mother came in with a bag full of flasks and tools - and young ivy had always shown interest for that. not exactly the violence of torture, although she quickly grew desensitized to it. the stories that came out of their targets’ mouths, however, were fascinating, small windows into the world of the supernatural. so she stayed, listened, asked questions sometimes, and slowly began performing the incentives as well. they tell her she has a future in that, a great interrogator. the thought makes her stomach restless: imagine all the knowledge she can amass. imagine all the things she’ll be able to ask when it’s just her interrogating, no one else in the room to supervise her work, much less her words, her excitement over the tales of her victims. 

despite that, the le are not within the most ruthless of hunting families. they believe in a strict moral code of balancing plates - all supernatural creatures are inherently evil (if they are not, it simply means they are fighting their natural urges to be so, and thus their goodness is an unstable state) and so, hunters like them are meant to kill off threats to the neutrality of the world by getting rid of some evil. they won’t kill someone purely because they are a supernatural., but will mistrust them, and likely keep track of them for a few days to make sure they can’t find any current (or past) transgressions. however, taking those lives should bring consequences to the hunters themselves - this, of course, ignoring the fucked up mentality/indoctrination this leaves them in, and things like ptsd, but they certainly don’t care about it. in order to keep that delicate balance, for every life a le takes, they mark their own skin with a dash, letting it bleed, hurt, and at last scar. they are both used as a sign of pride, members showing off their deformed skin with glee, and as a moral tally, keeping hunters from going on mass killings that are not justified.

things have, however, grown much more brutal since miles’ death. the incentive to grow that tally is stronger than ever, and the justifications for missions are simpler and simpler. 

III.

in oregon, they moved even more, until four years ago. arcane falls was alluring for its established community of supernaturals AND hunters, a dangerous game of cat and mouse right under their nose. ivy still lives with the rest of the family in a big house down a dead lane, the only other house in view being a decaying old one (that, of course, the entire family had already explored for safety and the hopes of finding something wicked in there). everyone took up little jobs, and ivy continues to expand her resume in bartending, now pouring drinks at the rough draft, where she keeps her ears open (even if a lot of the information she gathers turns into missions for her elders or teaching experiences for the younger ones) 

arcane falls is a bit of a dream for ivy. she’s so close to all these different beings, even serving some in the bar. a chatty bartender type, some of what she hears is not intel for missions, but rather knowledge for her own gain. here she’s been able to keep her eyes open for a hidden pleasure of hers: magic.

books inside carved books, ivy has been keeping lots of information on the supernatural - nothing that’s of use in tracking them down and killing them, but rather in understanding them, their powers and skills, the beauty of the terrifying dark they inhabit. magic, especially, is a secret vice. she’s just purely in love with the concept of breaking the laws of everything that is real and truly loses all the cynicism in her when she sees it. but it’s a terrible sin no one shall know.

she still hasn’t achieved the greatness she knows she’s capable of. in fact, ivy knows she hasn’t even had a chance to prove that she’s half as good as she claims to be. she hasn’t brought home any major token, hasn’t conducted any great interrogations, everything feels like she’s just holding her breath right now, so close to everything but not there yet. 

not having gotten her chance also leaves her on a particularly bellicose edge. it sees she’s a powderkeg always about to explode, and the smallest of thigns set off that anger she’s been building up for years - ready to anger, ready to start a fight, ready to self-destruct when outwardly destruction is not possible. 

she’s begun covering up her scars with tattoos, much to the dismay of her family. she claims it’s to not cause a scene at work once others see her arms and connect it to the le reputation; after all, her shoulders and upper arms are getting pretty crowded. delicate flowers and weeds are intertwined with the scars, collapsing into geometrical patterns closer to her neck, and she plans on getting more. much more. 

ivy is also a casual hunter?? sports hunting. forest survivalism. she enjoys pushing herself and self-training. the rush of being a predator, even if the moral consequences are harder to grasp.

this young lady loves playing with knives way too much. keeps a pocket hunting one with her at all times, of course, but truly enjoys swinging it around for fun, throwing, pretending to chop some fingers off just to giggle at the reactions around her. most things she does are in search of a certain rush like this. 

character parallels: erik killmonger, kate bishop, stefan salvatore, rosa diaz, bobbi morse, derek hale,sabrina spellman, tish walker, penny adiyodi, jace wayland, billy kaplan, raven reyes, julia wicker, annabeth chase,meera reed, sam winchester, isaac lahey, idk more help

PINTEREST to come soon oops

hmu for plots and such pls !!

[bat-losers-inc]

Kintsugi: Chapter 9

Summary: Final Crisis/Red Robin AU. Dick admits Tim to a psychiatric facility after Bruce is lost in time. Jason finds him suffering at the hands of a Scarecrow-copycat and breaks him out. While safe in Jason’s apartment, Tim still struggles with panic attacks and drug withdrawal. At a loss for what to do, Jason calls Roy Harper.

Pairings: Jason Todd & Tim Drake, Jason Todd & Dick Grayson, Roy Harper & Jason Todd.

                                               ___________________

Jason cut a path through the crowded club with Roy trailing after him, his head thrown back to peer over the mass of bodies on the dancefloor.

Jason stopped to orient himself before shouting back to Roy, “See anything?”

“Nothing yet!”

Jason muttered a curse to himself. The club was so loud he could barely hear himself think, though a small voice at the back of his head piped in that the bass might not sound nearly as loud if it wasn’t combined with the anxiety-induced thump of blood pounding incessantly at Jason’s temples.

He checked his phone again, hoping more than ever for a text from Tim saying he’d just gone out to get some air. Or, hell, even a text from Dick saying he’d found Tim— that he was safe and sober and at the manor. An hour ago his blood would have run cold at getting a text like that— thinking about how betrayed Tim would feel if he let something like that happen to him, but now? Now even knowing that Tim was with Dick: his brother who he didn’t trust and who he saw as more of a jailer than a family member, would be better than the alternatives. Because the alternatives weren’t good.

At least with Dick, he’d be safe. At least with Dick, he’d stay clean. Jason tried to calm his racing heart but every time he reminded himself to just remain calm he pictured Tim lying dead in a back alley from an overdose or cardiac arrest.

He checked his phone again. Not even a missed call.

Someone stumbled into Jason, nearly knocking him into a group of dancers.

“Hey, watch it!” Jason shouted, pulling his eyes away from the crowd to the intruder who grasped tightly at his arms to stop his fall. It was a teenager, perhaps a few years younger than Tim, and definitely too young to be in a place like this.

They found their footing and the teen released Jason’s arms. A flash of red and pink caught Jason’s eye, standing out against the overwhelming palette of blue and chrome that blanketed every available surface of the Iceberg Lounge.

Jason caught the boy’s wrist and pulled it back towards him, peering critically at the small plastic bag and the pink and white capsules that rolled around inside.

“Where did you get these?”

“The ‘fuck’s it to you?”

Jason grabbed the boy by his shirt collar as he struggled to yank free of his grip and jerked him closer until they stood face to face in the press of bodies. The kid was skinny for someone his age but he didn’t show the sweaty, spacey look of someone in the throes of withdrawal.  

“I’m not gonna narc on you. I just wanna know if you bought it from a guy on the floor or at the back.”

The boy stopped struggling and eyed him warily. “On the floor. The guy said the back room was busy.”

‘Busy’, what the hell did that mean? Jason knew the look of most of the arms dealers’ hired help and hadn’t seen them lingering protectively about the club. That was good. It meant he could probably eliminate them from the list of potential occupants in the back rooms which left him with the bigger drug dealers and the mafia bosses. Walking in on the wrong scene could turn out to be deadly.

“What guy?” he asked.

The boy turned back towards the way he’d just come and stood up a bit taller on his toes to peek over the heads of the partygoers around them. He jabbed his finger at a man moving along the far wall on the outskirts of the dance floor. “Him.”

“Thanks,” Jason snatched the bag out of his fingers and upended it on the floor. He ground the pills into a powder under his boot and released the kid.

“What the fuck’s wrong with you? 

“Oh, please! You’re not gonna die.” The seal had already been broken on the bag when he’d first caught sight of it and he knew that nobody around here sold two-fers of those pills, at least not if they wanted to make any money. That meant the kid had already swallowed some, enough to cut his craving at the very least, and Jason didn’t feel bad for doing away with the spares in case they fell into the wrong hands. “Besides, I only said I wasn’t gonna narc. I made no promises about anything after that.”

“Asshole,” the kid spat before shoving past him.    

“Ah, don’t worry, Jaybird. I still love you.” Roy slung his arm across his shoulders before leaning in to be heard over the noise. “So, any clues?”

Jason’s eyes were still trailing the man by the far wall as he slipped through the crowd, his eyes searching the partygoers with more than a casual interest.  “Possibly. There’s a chance Tim’s in one of the back rooms, though I have no idea why if there’s a guy selling on the floor.”

It could have just been the coloring of the strobing lights as they washed across them, but Jason could have sworn Roy’s face paled a little.

“What?” he asked.

“That kid from earlier seemed like he was just a casual user from around these parts. Maybe he comes around every once and awhile and the dealer knows him so he sells as asked.”

Roy continued, “but Tim… well, he might be a different case. I mean, even if you ignore the bruises that haven’t faded yet, he doesn’t really look the type. If he is as bad off as we think he is, then he might seem like easy pickings for a dealer looking to turn a regular sell into a windfall.”

He was right.

Jason turned and shoved hurriedly towards the back of the club, eyes locked on the dealer as he pocketed some folded bills and headed towards the back rooms.

They broke free of the crowd on the dance floor.

“Jason,” Roy called in warning. “Wait a sec. Shouldn’t we make a plan before we—”

“In all of our years working together, when have we ever had a plan?”

Roy’s hand on his forearm drew him up short like a ship to anchor. Jason looked back and stared into Roy’s face, worry lines stretching his skin taught across his strong forehead and cheekbones.

“I’m serious, Jason. This is dangerous.”

Jason felt for him, but he couldn’t afford to add Roy’s worries to the anxious weight that he already carried within his chest— a nauseating sensation that made him unsure if his heart was sinking deeper into his gut or if his stomach was rising like a wave to meet it. Either way, the balance was precarious and one wrong word from Roy could tip it.

So Jason pulled away, saying simply, “Tim needs us.”

He turned just in time to duck under the raised arm of a waitress, her tray piled high with empty glasses and beer bottles. His eyes cut back to the dealer, picking up the lost trail like a hunter in the forest, only to find a door swinging shut in his wake.

Jason lunged forward and wedged his body in between the door and its frame. The dealer turned back and for one wordless second, they locked eyes with Jason half-pinned in place before he shoved his way into the back room with Roy right on his heels.

Roy locked the door.

Jason scanned the room, working out the exits and all of the people who could pose as obstacles to that exit point. Were they armed or would they just get in his way?

“Jason!”

Tim seemed pleased to see him. It should have been flattering, but looking closer Jason saw how Tim’s eyes kept trying to fix on his face only to slip off with each attempt, his lids heavy and blinking at half-mast. He noted the looseness of his limbs, that lack of a defined tension that had hummed as steady as an electric current through his every glance and action since Jason had first set eyes on him. By now, it felt like part of his genetic makeup and Jason wanted to be happy that it was gone— but this calm demeanor that Tim was putting off felt equally foreign and inhospitable: hermetically sealed to keep out all the bad sensations no matter what that cost him. So yeah, Jason couldn’t trick himself into feeling flattered by Tim’s excitement to see him here, after all, it was easy to be friendly with strangers when everything was dulled out to the fourth degree.

Jason pulled his gaze from Tim to the other two men who lounged next to him on the couch. One sat on the far side, watching them with mild interest as he sipped his drink. The other leaned forward to throw his arm across Tim’s back.

He perched his chin on Tim’s shoulder. “Friend of yours?”

The hint of a smile on his lips. Tim nodded, seemingly unfazed by the physical contact of the stranger against him. Jason reminded himself to breathe and not take it personally that Tim would react like this with a stranger but still flinched back any time Jason made a sudden reach for his phone. It’s the drugs, he reminded himself, but that didn’t change the fact that this guy was far too familiar for someone Tim had only just met.

“Are you looking for anything in particular, or just browsing?” His eyes were on Jason now. He winked.

He doesn’t matter, Jason thought furiously. He swallowed back whatever self-righteous rage was rising in him, slipped his hand into Tim’s, and pulled him up from the couch.

“C’mon. We’re going home.”

Tim wobbled before righting himself with a hand on Jason’s bicep.“But, I—”

“Hang on,” the man on the far side of the couch sat up suddenly, his drink sloshing in its glass. “He hasn’t paid up yet.”

Jason yanked his wallet from his back pocket. “How much?”

“Well, that depends,” this time from the other dealer as he stood up and moved towards a table where a variety of small pill bags were spread out in neat little piles. He spread his hands out over them like a magician showing off an ordinary deck of cards before pulling off a magic trick. “How much is he buying? 5 pills? 10? 30, if he’s looking to share. It looks like it would do you both some good to relax a little.”

“We’re not buying anything. I’ll pay for whatever he’s taken already and that’s it.”

The men shared a look across the back of the couch. It clearly wasn’t what they had planned for. Still, they recovered fast, Jason had to give them that.

“Harsh, it’s no wonder he came here without you looking all wrung out like he did. It was all we could do to give him something on the house, just to keep him upright.”

“Rodney, shut up,” the man on the far side of the couch stood. “What he’s trying to say is that we haven’t gotten the chance to start talking prices.”

“I’m sorry, are you two running a drug business or a social event?”

Rodney apparently thought nothing of taking his partner’s advice.

“Listen,” he stepped around the table and came back to face Jason, placing a friendly hand on his shoulder like he was dispensing some sage wisdom.

Jason shrugged off his hand.

“For God’s sake, Rodney. Can’t you ever just shut your mouth— ”

“Mick…” Rodney held up a hand. “Mickey, chill out, would you? I’m only trying to make a point here.”

He turned back to Jason. “As I was saying, a sales job is a sales job, no matter what you’re selling. And some customers need a bit of wooing before they make a deal.”

“Wooing?” Jason’s calm snapped. He grabbed the man by the neck and threw him up against the wall, his choking grip cutting off his pained cry as his head connected with a bang . “Is that what you call loading a 17-year-old kid up with drugs and alcohol before taking him for all the money he’s got, and maybe then some? Trust me, I know you’re type, Rodney , and I don’t buy this ‘friendly guy’ act for one fucking second.”

“Leave him alone, Jason.” Tim was yanking at his arm where it was applying ever-increasing pressure to the dealer’s throat. “Leave him!”

“Roy, take Tim out the back. I’ll settle this and meet you across the street.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Jason saw Roy step up to Tim and attempt to steer him out of the room by the elbow, urging quietly, “Come on, let’s go”.

Rodney was spraying spittle onto Jason’s wrist in his laborious attempts to draw a full breath.

“I’m not going anywhere,” Tim snapped back, “I chose to come here. If you don’t like it, then… leave.”

“We’re not leaving here without you,” said Jason.

“Well, grab a drink then!”

Jason had lost all his patience. “Roy, get him out of here!”

More sounds of a struggle outside of Jason’s peripheral vision. Jason imagined Roy making a more aggressive grab at Tim’s arm this time and Tim shoving just as violently out of his grip. Suddenly, Tim was standing on Jason’s right. Before he had time to do more than register this fact, he struck down at his elbow, breaking his grip on Rodney’s neck. The man slid to the floor, spluttering and clutching at his throat.

Jason stared at Tim where he stood beside him, wavering ever so slightly to keep his feet. “What the fuck is wrong with you? I’m just trying to keep you safe. To bring you home.”

Tim laughed and placed a hand against the wall to brace himself. “Home, Jason?”

“Why are you being like this, Tim? We had an agreement.”

“We did, but now I think we should…” The words took a long time to come to him, “part ways.”

Yeah, thought Jason, that sounds like a great idea when you can’t even stand up straight.

He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “I got you out of that hellhole that Dick left you to rot in. I saved you… I’m still trying to save you, though apparently from your own stupidity.”

Tim shoved off the wall and took a lurching step forward until he could glare right up at Jason.“First of all, fuck you! I don’t need you to save me, you egotistical prick.”

“Second,” Tim laughed again and threw his hands out at his sides. “One act of brotherly kindness in the eight years we’ve known each other — eight years —  doesn’t mean you can decide what’s best for me. Do you get it now, Jason? Ha! Do you under— ”  

Jason slapped him once, hard and fast. Tim’s head snapped to the side, a red bloom spreading across his cheek and chin. He stumbled backward and caught himself with his shoulder against the wall, where he slumped and stayed that way.

“Jason!” Roy was pulling him a safe distance away, one step, two, his grip on his arm tight and reprimanding without anything needing to be said.

Tim reached up to touch his cheek, his finger worrying a cut on his bottom lip that was starting to ooze a slow trickle of blood. It felt like an eternity before he returned his gaze and Jason was struck with the sudden need to shout, I’m sorry! Can’t you see I’m sorry? Can’t you see how much I put on the line: my heart, my reputation, and my sanity, all of it just to help you? What more do I have to do to convince you?

“My, my,” Jason witnessed Tim’s startled flinch— the way he jerked to attention. His eyes jumped to a spot behind Jason’s shoulder and widened, he pressed himself back against the wall, palms flat. Jason didn’t need to look, he knew that voice. “It’s like a telenovela in here. Good for T.V., but so very bad for businesses.”

Jason turned to see Penguin standing in the corner of the room, his suit cutting a sharp black and white outline on his robust figure, the shiny head of his cane glowing a menacing icy blue under the Iceberg lounge’s lights. Two men flanked them, guns held up at the ready. The dealer from the floor was no longer in the room, hell, he was probably the one that had slipped out and gone crying to Penguin in the first place. If I was him I wouldn’t show my face again either.

Jason felt like the room had suddenly become a scene in a snowglobe, all of them frozen where they stood.

“We’re sorry,” Roy finally broke the silence. “We’ll pay and leave right away. You won’t see us in the Iceberg Lounge again, we swear.”

“Oh, but after you put on such a performance for my other valued customers? No, no, you’ve obviously had some serious problems at the hands of my salesmen here. Let’s sit down and see if we can work things out like gentlemen, hmm?”

Jason’s palms were sweating. He wanted to wipe them on his pant legs but was too afraid that the sudden movement might earn him a bullet in the head. Instead, he raised them slowly.

“It was just a personal issue between brothers.” he gestured between himself and Tim. “We shouldn’t have brought it into your place of business. We’ll just take it outside.”

He reached blindly behind him and grabbed at Tim’s shirt, tugging him as he started for the door. “Come on, Tim.”

“Sit down.”

“I—”

“Sit down, ” A series of clicks as multiple guns released their safeties as if on some silent cue. “Or I’ll blow a hole in your friend’s face where his eye used to be.”

The muzzle of a gun was pressed against the back of Roy’s head where he stood half-turned between Penguin and his men and Jason and Tim across the room. He stared between Jason and the couch in front of him. Back and forth. His eyes pleading with Jason silently.

Fuck.

Jason sat, pulling Tim down onto the couch with him. Roy was shoved down on Jason’s other side.

“Now,” started Penguin, taking a seat and undoing the button on his suit jacket so it fell easily at his sides, “as I understand it, your brother came here looking to have a good time. There’s nothing wrong with that, I mean, we all need to take the edge off a bit every once and awhile, right?”

Jason didn’t like the words he was putting in his mouth.“Yes, but—”

“And he has the money to pay for his drug of choice?”

“Yes,” Tim replied, fishing a fold of crumpled bills out of his pant pocket and dropped it into Penguin’s extended hand.

That’s my money, thought Jason. It’s not his to use and fuck up his life with. If only he could say that in a way that didn’t make him sound like a cranky five-year-old who got his toy fire truck stolen at playtime. Even if he could, it didn’t matter. To Penguin, money was money and business was business; no matter who the customer was or whose money they were using to pay for products with. For as long as he could buy off public officials and use their influence to rise a little higher into the inner circle of Gotham’s elites, Penguin took no sides.

Penguin adjusted his monocle and counted off the bills. “Benzodiazepine, was it?”

This question wasn’t directed at Jason and it was the dealer, Mick, who answered him. “Yeah, Charlie said that’s all he asked for on the floor.”

Penguin harrumphed testily, “So, what’s the problem here? Don’t you want him to get what he came here for? I mean, what’s it to you if it makes him happy?”

“Yeah, Jason,” Tim eyed him, “Don’t you want me to be happy? I thought you cared about me.”

There it was again, that ever so manipulative streak that Tim had of playing Jason’s affections against him. He wasn’t trying to hide it now and Jason could do nothing but stare him down and reply, “We have Bezos at home. We don’t need anymore.”

Penguin motioned Rodney over. Jason watched the dealer lean down to Penguin’s level and exchanged whispered notes. Finally, Penguin leaned back in his chair.

“Well, I hate to break it to you, Chum, but Guppy here’s only taken two. The price of that isn’t even worth ten minutes of my time. Make it an even four, at the very least, and we have a deal.”

“Yeah, okay, four then. I’ll pay for four.”

Rodney stepped in and placed two pills on the glass tabletop: one in front of Jason and the other in front of Roy.

“Why don’t you give them a try, see what all the hype's about.”

Roy’s hand gave a discreet spasm against him where it rested on the couch between them. There wasn’t a lot of space dividing them on the small couch so Jason could feel the bump of his knuckles as his hand curled into a tight fist. Jason dropped his eyes to it, examining the white knuckle grip turning red where his fingernails pierced the flesh of his palm.

Jason glanced at Roy, his emotional turmoil almost palpable in the small closed-off room. It filled Jason’s lungs like second-hand smoke until he too sat rigid in his seat, choking on a gut-twisting fear.

He forced himself to think of something to say that would get them out of this situation. If he refused them another time their opinion of him might change from rude to downright ungracious. It was one thing to try to sidestep a confrontation, but another entirely to flat out refuse one of Penguin’s offers. After all, this wasn’t the Red Hood doing the refusing, it was Jason Todd: the parentless, penniless nobody from nowhere with nothing to offer to anybody.

“Alright,” Jason snatched up Tim’s abandoned whiskey glass, “what the hell!” He swiped both pills up off the table in what he hoped was a careless gesture.

A hand came down heavily on his arm before he could finish bringing the pills up to his mouth. Rodney stood over his shoulder, his face looking menacingly sincere. “Don’t you want to share with your pal?”

That small smile again. Jason still wanted to punch it off his face, maybe now more than ever.

“It’s not really his thing,” said Jason. The pills in his fist were becoming clammy from his sweaty palms but he didn’t dare release them.

“How does he know if he doesn’t try?”

“Oh, I’ve tried them,” Roy’s voice was no more than a croak. “believe me.”

Roy's eyes stayed trained directly down at his knees, the messy tangle of his hair hiding his face from view. Perhaps he thought that if he blocked out the world around him as much as possible than the temptation would simply go away. It brought to Jason’s mind the painful imagery of a child hiding inside a closet, afraid of the boogeyman.  

“Oh, come now!” cheered Penguin, his joviality hitting Jason like a slap to the face. He was relishing in this. “Share with your friend!”

Tim laughed. It sounded to Jason like it came from a long way off.

His mouth was dry. Roy started to rock in small back in forth motions in his seat, mumbling something to himself quietly. Jason counted the beats like a metronome as the leather cushion they shared crackled with every forward rock of his body. In a last-ditch attempt, he tried for the truth, hoping despite it all that he could appeal to their better natures. “Please, he’s been clean for a year now. He’s got the chip to prove it and everything.”

Penguin only smiled.

Roy’s mumbling rose in pitch to a steady mantra. Jason knew what he was saying before he could even make out the words. It was the well-worn rhythm of it that gave it away, inscribed in his memory from so many long nights staying up together inside the shitty apartments of foreign countries, two days from Roy’s last fix with no hope of another on the horizon. “ — grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”

As soon as he finished the words he started them again.

“Christ! Make him shut up!” groaned Mick, after a minute of this. “I feel like I’m in a fucking church.”

Jason couldn't take it anymore either. “You want to fuck someone up? Fine. I’ll take whatever the fuck you want me to take. Snort it, shoot it, smoke it, I don’t fucking care. Just let him get up and walk out of here with my brother and you can take all the money I’ve got and make me do anything you fucking want, alright?”

He tossed the wad of folded bills on the table where Penguin had placed Tim’s counted stack. “Just let them leave.”

Penguin uncrossed his legs and leaned forward in his seat to stare closely at him. “Has anyone ever told you you’re a very bad negotiator.”

“I guess I’m not used to having something to negotiate for.”

Roy’s voice continued in a breathless whisper next to him. Jason repeated his words silently, steeling himself for what was to come. The courage to change the things I can. Roy didn’t try to interfere or object. They had made a vow a long time ago that for as much as they could help it, their friendship would never come in the way of Roy’s sobriety. Jason was already formulating a plan for the rest of the evening. He would get through whatever shit show happened after Roy and Tim were clear of the club, check himself into the nearest rehab facility until he cleared the drugs from his system—  

The door closed with a click.

“Lucky for him, I’m a very good negotiator.” Nobody had heard him come in and they all looked at once to the source. Dick was still in civvies but he held his badge in one hand, letting it catch the light and the eye of every man in the room, Penguin especially.

“Now the question you should really be asking yourself, Cobblepot, is: Do I think playing this little mind game is worth having a police officer shout out his presence in a club full of customers who depend on my discreteness and security? Because, oof, that’s gonna be some bad PR you have to deal with, so I hope he’s worth it.”

Jason laughed, the pills slipping from his fist. There were tears welling at the corners of his eyes. He couldn’t fucking believe it. Roy too seemed shocked, for his prayers had stopped in favor of holding his breath.

Penguin glared around the room. It was hard to say who he was more pissed at. His men for not noticing Dick’s intrusion until it was too late, Dick for pulling such a trick, or Jason and Roy for being the motivation for it.

“Get out of my club. And stay out.”

They didn’t need to be told twice. Jason grabbed Tim by the arm and slung it over his shoulder. Sometime in the span of a few minutes, Tim had gone from dazed to near-unconsciousness. Jason carried his dead weight with him to the fire exit and they stumbled out into Gotham’s cool damp night. They walk for more than a mile before finally stopping under a dim street light beside a bodega shuttered up for the evening.

“Well, that was close,” Jason said finally. “Thanks for the help back there. Seriously, we would have been screwed if you hadn’t shown up.”

“It’s no—” Dick had started to say when Roy cut over him aggressively.

“And whose fault was that?”

Jason stared at him, shifting Tim’s heavy weight. “I’m sorry, what? You’re not seriously trying to blame me for this, are you? I just risked my life to keep you clean.”

Roy shoved his messy tangles out of his face, looking like he wanted nothing more than to rip them out at the roots.“You wouldn’t have had to if you had listened to me in the first place and stopped to come up with a plan before barging in there.”

“And what would you have decided to do, Mr. Know-it-all, huh?” snapped Jason. “What would your big plan be?”

Roy shrugged, “I would have left him. The second I saw that he made the choice to stay in that room, I would have left. If he came home, then great! If not? It’s his life. But you need to let him hit bottom because all the help you have to give will mean nothing to him until he realizes he’s got nowhere else to go but up.”

“And what if his bottom is six feet under? I can’t leave him knowing it might be the last time I see him alive.”

Roy shrugged again. “It’s not up to you. Either way, I can’t do this anymore. Not like this.”

Roy turned to Dick who had been hanging back in the shadows, hoping to be overlooked. “Any chance I can get a ride to Blackgate Penitentiary?”

Dick looked between them, his eyes sending a silent apology to Jason. “Yeah... sure.”

“Roy,” Jason called out, watching in vain as Roy turned away and started walking up the sidewalk with Dick.

Tim’s head lolled onto his shoulder and Jason shifted the weight of his heavy limbs again. He stared down his careless face, feeling something akin to anger rising up inside him.

He pushed it down, shifted Tim’s dead weight again, and started the long walk home.

[emma-nation]

Without You - Bloodbound AU (Chapter 9) *For You Sequel*

Summary: Gaius is back. While coming up with a plan to take him down, the gang must deal with some new life-changing events.

Genre: Angst/Adventure/Romance

Rating: T - Warning for violence and language

Tag List: @begging-for-kamilah, @lulu-the-cat, @ilovekamilahsayeed, @zoe6111, @kennaxval (If you want to be tagged in future chapters/fics of this pairing let me know!)

Notes:

- English is my second language, please forgive me for any mistakes.

- Hope you enjoy it, your reviews and likes are always appreciated.

- Things have went as planned again this week, so here’s another regular update for ya :)

- Slight MxF Smut Scene Warning in the Flashback session! If you’re not interested, you can just skip this part without affecting the understanding of the chapter.

- FxF Smut Alert!

Lysimachus

About thirty minutes earlier they were driving back home, in complete silence. A lot of thoughts and feelings consuming his mind. Never, in his 2064 years of life, he had seen a Vampire survive a Feral bite. It was an extremely painful death. Back on his days as a Vampire Hunter, he even extracted Feral's blood and injected it on Vampires, infecting them and watching as they went through the gruesome transformation, before killing them. It was one of his favorite torture methods.

When they entered his apartment, Priya gently grabbed his arm.

"It was nothing," she assured. "The bite was superficial, I'm not feeling a thing."

Lysimachus turned around to look into her dark brown eyes, for the first time since he spotted the wound on her shoulder. She was stunning, truly stunning. He still remembered seeing her on TV or magazines, prior their meeting. Or how Zoe would always grumble about never being able to afford a Lacroix outfit. He never cared. The Fashion world wasn't his thing. While he appreciated being well-dressed, the brands of his clothes never mattered, as long as they made him look sharp.

Until somebody, sold him the information Priya Lacroix was part of the infamous Council of New York. The one group who could lead him to Gaius. For months he studied the Fashion Designer, following her steps on social media, until her VIP party in Amsterdam.

----- Flashback (slight smut, feel free to skip it) -----

"Show me what you got," she ordered him to remove every piece of clothing he was wearing. He learned she was so selective with potential houseboys as she was selective with her models.

Following her command, Lysimachus was completely naked in front of her. She walked around him, examining his body features.

"Hmmm, not very tall... Only 5'8". But..." she dragged her nails on his toned abdomen. "You've got a nice pack here."

Then she went behind him, grabbing his buttocks.

"And here too."

Finally, she stopped in front of him, looking down at his crotch. She grinned.

"Interesting... I'd like to see it on full-mode, if you don't mind."

"Being around you, it won't be a problem."

After showing her what she wanted to see, he had passed on another step of her test. But as he was informed, there was still a lot he’d have to prove to earn her approval.

"Please yourself," she demanded.

"As you wish."

She watched him with arms crossed, head cocked to the side. The manner he pleased himself and the amount of time he was taking to finish made a hint of satisfaction appear in her face.

"Stop."

"Make me," he teased, knowing her tastes.

She slapped him hard on the face and grabbed his hair violently, making him face her.

"One final step, and you're mine."

With one move, she completely teared off her clothes.

"You better give me the good stuff... or..."

"Or?"

She approached, whispering in his ear.

"I'll kill you."

After extensive hours of rough, wild sex, he managed to impress her. No mortal could ever give her that experience. She had found someone of her level, of her tastes... she only didn't know he was a Vampire yet. Or a Vampire Hunter. But she was very close from finding out... Lysimachus smirked, as his eyes turned red and he exposed his fangs, ready to drink Priya's blood completely.

----- Flashback Ending -----

That was 8 months before. In that period a lot had changed, especially recently, after knowing who she truly was. In front of him he could no longer see a wicked Vampire, but a broken girl. Who had been abused and humiliated, trying to heal her wounds through revenge. Giving men and women the same treatment she received. Deep down, she desired to be respected. And loved too.

He forced a smile, knowing what she was saying wasn't true. The bite went deep down her flesh. At this point the infection must be going through her veins, and soon, it'd reach her brain.

"I mean it, Hunter. I just need to feed and this thing will be healed," she insisted, reaching her purse. "I'm gonna find someone on Bleeder and..."

That was the last thing she said before collapsing. On the floor, her body started twitching on a strange manner. Her veins becoming more visible and her skin more pale.

"Priya!" He shouted, kneeling beside her and holding her in his arms. It was happening. She was becoming a Feral. "S-Stay with me. Talk to me... You need to stay conscious..."

He took her to his bed, placing her comfortably on his pillows.

"T-Tell me something about you... like, uhhh... when is your birthday?"

Through the excruciating pain she was feeling, she still managed to give him a small laugh.

"Why does it matter, Hunter?"

"Because... we'll throw you the hell of a party."

"November 6th," she answered. "But... it's 8 months from now... I-I won't make it."

"Of course you will!" Lysimachus held her face with one hand, while the other grabbed her cold, shaking hand. "I-I... I know a lot about magic and there's a cure for this. I'm gonna call my witch friend and soon you will be... snatching wigs again."

Priya fought a smile.

After feeding her a blood bag he had stocked on a freezer, he gave her a strong shot of painkillers and tranquilizers. Before falling asleep, Priya noticed a stake attached to his belt.

"Just do it, Hunter. Please let me die decently, gorgeous as I am. I don't wanna turn into a disgusting Feral."

"Hey," Lysimachus stroked her soft hair, before lying next to her, "that one was for the Vampires attacking your club, not for you. Why don't you rest now? I called my friend and she's on her way. We'll save you, I promise."

It was a lie, he knew, but she needed to feel secure, while he was willing to try everything, until the last moment. Killing Priya was not an option. Not right now.

With barely no more strength or control left, she squeezed his hand.

"I... trust... you..."

----------

Kamilah

Kamilah had been locked in her home office for a while. She had a need of being alone. The first, but not her main concern, was Amy coming home late night, and drunk, after a night of fun with Lily and Jax. That wouldn’t have been a problem under another circumstances, but at that moment she needed to stay out of sight. Gaius had thralls observing each one of the clans and with that, he could easily figure out she was back from London.

Her main concern was Lysimachus. After driving straight to Priya’s club and not finding them, she headed back to her penthouse, where she started receiving multiple phone calls and texts from her brother. He was desperate for her help. Something had went terribly wrong.

Answer me, please. I can’t lose two people I care about in the same night.

While she didn’t care for Priya’s life, she felt extremely guilty. Accidentally, she had told Gaius’ about her relationship with Lysimachus. Her brother had fallen in love, and being alive for over two millennia is more than enough to figure out that love is a weakness, that makes you vulnerable and fragile.

A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts.

“May I come in?” Amy asked. “Please.”

Kamilah sighed and unlocked the door. Her fiancée came in, wearing a casual outfit after a cold shower, that helped to return to a more sober state of mind.

“I’m so sorry, Kamilah. I was bored and... I messed up, didn’t I?”

She took a deep breath, taking a moment to answer.

“Not as much as I did.”

“Why? You scolded me so much that I hadn’t even time to ask. How did the meeting go? Did Gaius do anything to you?”

“To me, no. But...”

She lowered her eyes, avoiding Amy’s gaze while she told her everything. Gaius’ plans for The Council members, Lysimachus reaction upon the attack to The Crimson Veil, her anger and finally, the possibly tragic outcome.

“Oh,” Amy looked somehow shocked. “Have you checked on them yet?”

“No,” Kamilah told. “How am I supposed to tell my brother I was responsible for whatever happened to Priya? She’s a heartless monster, Amy. But he cares about her, for some reason.”

“We should drop by his apartment. That’s the right thing to do.”

Kamilah agreed with a firm nod. Amy’s strength and confidence during moments of crisis impressed her sometimes. How could a mortal be so young and yet so decided and wise?

Minutes later she was sitting at her brother’s office, while he desperately put off books and papers from shelves and drawers, looking for anything that could prevent Priya from turning Feral.

“Brother,” she gulped. “I know you’ve spent a long time around witches but... I’ve never seen a Vampire that healed from a Feral bite.”

“We couldn’t go out in sunlight too, remember? Now we can. Because of Priya.”

Frustrated, he threw a chair against the wall, smashing it into a thousand pieces.

“There’s got to be something...”

“Even if it does, at this point her entire body is infected! She’s a risk to all of us!”

“What do you suggest then, Kamilah?” Lysimachus slammed his fist on the table. “That I enter that bedroom and stake her while she’s asleep? Wasn’t it the same that they did to your lover back in Italy? How did that feel, huh? How do you think she felt, when you weren’t able to protect her?”

The words hit her straight in the heart. She hadn’t though about that event for a while, but it was definitely a scar she carried. She never had time to protect her, to tell how much she loved her, or even say goodbye. While she opened her mouth to say something the bell rang and Lysimachus returned, accompanied by the young witch that provided them the rings.

Kamilah left them alone in the office, joining Amy at the living room. The girl held her hand in a comforting manner.

“It’s not your fault,” she said. “He’d have done it sooner or later.”

“I know. Gaius isn’t the kind that quits and my brother isn’t either. Lysimachus always thought he could save the entire world and that’s what got him in prison.”

Suddenly Kamilah noticed the looks of Lysimachus and the witch were at their direction. She furrowed her brows as she detected the last few words of their conversation.

“...maybe her blood could help.”

Lysimachus approached, dragging Amy by the arm.

“Amy, I need a favor,” he pulled a dagger from his pocket. “I need you to feed Priya some blood.”

“No,” Kamilah protested. “You’re not dragging my fiancée into this! She’s not even herself anymore. She could lose control and kill Amy.”

“Come on, Kamilah. It’s her only chance! Being The First Vampire’s descendant, Amy’s blood has powerful properties. She could save Priya.”

Kamilah pulled Amy back to her direction by the other arm.

“Guys,” Amy tried to settle things between them. “Why don’t we sit down and discuss our options?”

“Discuss our options?!” Kamilah shouted. “You’re not risking your life for a mistake I did.”

“Excuse me?!” Lysimachus questioned. “It seems like you have something to share, sister.”

“It’s my fault. I accidentally told Gaius’ about you and Priya. He was furious when you prevented the explosion and used it to get a revenge on you.”

Her twin brother was completely mute for a second. Then he looked at her in a way she had never seen before... there was fire in his eyes.

“Y-You... betrayed me.”

“I had no intentions, brother. I’m so sorry, he wanted information about you and this was the less important thing I could think of.”

“Less important?” Lysimachus let a sarcastic laugh. “Less important for who?! You know what? Do you know why we’re in this mess in first place? Because I gave up on the ritual. I gave up on the ritual because in order to kill Gaius we must kill Amy too. I protected your lover Kamilah, meanwhile you sacrificed mine for your selfish purposes!”

He punched the wall, opening a large hole on it before heading to the bedroom.

Kamilah sat down again, processing the words she had just heard.

----------

Amy

At the balcony, Amy breath in some fresh air, still undecided about what to do. She had no problem offering a small amount of blood to feed Priya, as Lysimachus wanted, but would that be enough? Kamilah also had a point, she was about to turn Feral. She could easily lose control and kill her.

And there was the ritual. To destroy Gaius, she’d have to sacrifice her own life.

“It seems like you’re carrying a lot on your shoulders,” the young witch appeared right beside her.

“Oh, trust me. Only a year ago I was only a small-town girl, who wanted to come to New York, get a decent job and enjoy life. Now, I'm engaged to one of the most powerful CEOs of the country, who's a Vampire and the fate of their race, and also the human race, depends on me."

"No evil doppelgänger yet?"

"To be honest I wouldn't be surprised if she just appeared at my door."

Amy laughed at their joke, breaking a little the tension of the moment. The witch girl was about her age, they could've been hanging out, going to a club or to a theater together, but they were both dealing with the supernatural.

"So what's your story?" Amy asked.

"As exciting as yours," the witch answered. "Grew up in an orphanage, got separated from my brother, messed with some dark forces to find him... Anyways, I decided to settle down at New York just doing the witch stuff, you know?"

Amy smiled again. Even with such a tragic past, that girl was able to keep a good humor.

"So, you know about the ritual. The one to destroy Gaius."

"Sorry, I tried my best to protect you when I discovered. This is what I promised my ancestors. But your friends are good at finding out stuff."

"Do I really have to..."

She nodded in response.

"Amy, do you want to hear an advice? Get debriefed, go away. Runaway from this world while you still can. If the information about your origins fall in the wrong hands, they'll start a war for your blood."

"I can't, I love Kamilah. More than I ever loved anyone in my life."

"But someday, you'll die. Kamilah won't. And she'll possibly find another Amy to love. Think about it."

Amy fell silent again, thinking about her words. She though about her family, her hometown, her old life and then... Kamilah. She was everything she ever wished for. The danger, the adventure, the passion she always looked for, she found in the female vampire.

"She's getting worse," Lysimachus scream echoed through the apartment. "Will you all just going to let her die?"

"I'll do it," Amy announced. "I'll feed her some of my blood."

"Have you lost all sense?" Kamilah followed her to the bedroom. "She's going to..."

When she opened the door, Priya was tied to the bed. Her eyes were blood-red and she was hissing loud. The only few words she was able to pronounce were senseless.

"She's losing her conscience," Kamilah told.

"Not if I can stop it," Lysimachus argued.

Amy grabbed his dagger, opening a gash on her palm and dripping some blood inside a glass. She handed it to Lysimachus who forced Priya to drink it. Surprisingly, the Fashion Designer eyes returned to their normal color and she calmed down.

"Hello friend with benefits," Lysimachus caressed her hair.

"Only... the... b... ben... benefits," Priya joked, making him smile.

"Feeling any better?"

She shook her head in denial, for his disappointment.

"S-Slipping... again... want... want to... kill... you."

Frustrated, the former Vampire Hunter punched the wall again.

"Just... do it."

Amy shared a look with Kamilah. Her fiancée had been completely closed down since learning about the ritual.

The young witch also watched the scene, with a puzzled look.

"She doesn't have a Brand, does she?" She asked.

"No," Lysimachus told. "She doesn't even know who's her Maker."

"The Brand is meant to keep the conscience tethered to the body. Maybe if we gave her one, infused by the blood of an older vampire..."

"I'll do it," Kamilah agreed. "It's my fault she's dying so..." she pulled her amulet and a lighter from her jacket.

"Noooo," Priya weakly whined. "Not... Kamilah's... tramp stamp..."

"Shut up! I'm trying to save your life."

"Wait," the female witch ordered. "I have a better idea. Seal the Brand with Amy's blood. Nothing is more powerful than The First Vampire's blood."

----------

Kamilah

Kamilah was browsing on her computer when Amy entered her dark office. After Branding Priya, she had gone home. The life of the Fashion Designer wasn't her priority right now, Amy's life was.

If Lysimachus was telling the truth about the ritual, she needed to act immediately. No one would sacrifice her wife-to-be, even for such a big purpose like destroying Gaius.

"How's Priya?" She asked, trying to show some sympathy.

"She has stopped losing her conscience, but the bite isn't healing. It has started to spread," Amy told. "I'm not sure if she's gonna make it. I wish I could do something more."

"Well, don't even say it in front of my brother. If he hears that, he may want to..." she stopped. "Nevermind."

Amy approached, sitting on her lap. She studied her computer screen, curious.

"Uhhh... Is that where you're planning to spend our honeymoon?"

"It's a house I own in Sweden. I've got it in a big deal I closed a few years ago. I was thinking it's a perfect place to start a new life, don't you think?"

"Do you mean... move to Sweden?"

"It's a small town. No one will ever find us. I have contacts, they'll give us new IDs and..."

"It's about the ritual, isn't it?"

Amy stared inside her eyes, Kamilah could see she was so lost and scared as she was.

"We're not doing it," she pressed her forehead on Amy's. "Never."

"But..." Amy placed a hand on the back of her neck, "it'd set you free."

"I'll never be free without you."

Kamilah pressed her lips on Amy's, kissing her slowly, while her fingers gently stoked the girl’s side.

"This is why we have to runaway. If the rest of The Council finds out... they'll come for you.

"I have another idea in mind."

Amy kissed her again, fiercely, firmly. With a force she hadn't felt ever before. She finished it by nibbling on her lower lip.

"Turn me," she whispered in Kamilah's ear. "Turn me right now. I'll become useless to the ritual and... I'll be yours forever."

"It's not that simple. Gaius would still come after you. And there's a lot you need to consider. What about your family? You won't be able to be so close to them anymore."

"I don't care..." Amy brushed her lips on hers again. "You're my family now."

"And you won't be able to have children."

"I can adopt."

"You..." Amy silenced her with her index finger.

"No more excuses, Kamilah. I give up on anything to spend the eternity with you."

"Eternity is a long time, are you aware of this?"

"Yeah..." Amy pretended to be pensive for a second. "But I think I can tolerate your temper and your cynicism for the eternity."

"In this case, I better work harder. Tolerating your insatiable hunger and your habit of losing stuff for the eternity may be expensive."

Amy laughed before pulling her for another kiss.

"I love when you try to be funny."

"Well, you started it."

The girls hand went under her shirt, feeling every inch of her stomach and chest.

"I was so afraid I wouldn't see you again," she spoke smoothly as her hands went down to Kamilah's pants, unbuttoning them.

"I feared Gaius had killed or even hypnotized you for real," Amy's mouth went down to her jawline and neck, while her hands traveled inside Kamilah's underwear. "Seriously, I even..."

"Amy," Kamilah interrupted her, rolling her eyes. "Can you not say his name while... doing this?"

"Of course," Amy apologized. "I'm sorry."

Kamilah closed her eyes, enjoying Amy's strokes on her most sensitive spot. She moved her hips, following the girl’s movements.

When she arched her back, finally reaching climax, she whispered in Amy's ear.

"This weekend... at the Hamptons' house. I'll prepare everything and... I'm Turning you."

----------

Amy

Lying on the bed with Kamilah, Amy grinned ear to ear. Being Turned and running away with her fiancée solved all their problems. Being biologically dead, she'd no longer be The One. Her blood would lose all its power. And also... she'd never have to leave Kamilah.

"Tell me about that Bachelorette Party," Kamilah broke the silence. "I'm not very fond of this idea."

"Oh, no big deal. Lily took me to this Strip club, full of hot guys and girls. Even Jax gave us a private little show inside the limo."

As Kamilah widened her eyes in shock then furrowed her brows, as if she was ready to explode.

"I'm joking," Amy quickly announced. "Only a few drinks among friends in a cool supernatural bar."

"Which one?" Kamilah wanted to know. "I know every supernatural bar in New York and none of them is safe for you."

"It's a new one. Founded by one of the Shadow Den members."

Kamilah didn't answer, but by her face, she still didn't approve the idea.

“Right,” Amy changed the subject, “now, what about that meeting? You still haven’t told me everything. There's something else in your mind."

Kamilah let out a deep sigh, that suggested something else was disturbing her.

"Hearing his revenge plans, the things he's planning for The Council members... makes me wonder what he's planning for me."

"Didn't you earn his trust again?"

"I know him, Amy. He would never forgive me for what I did. He's saving the worst for me, and he must be planning to use you or my brother for that."

Amy was pensive for a moment, then she grabbed a notebook and a pen from the nightstand drawer.

"What are you doing? Kamilah looked at her intrigued.

"Our own plan," Amy started explaining. "We have a head-start, you know what he's planning."

"A conflict between me and my brother was exactly what he needed. I’ve just made things easier for him, now I’m not in good terms with Lysimachus. God knows what stupidity he’ll be doing after Priya dies. "

"Okay..." Amy wrote Lysimachus name and pulled some arrows. "We need to ensue his protection."

Kamilah smiled and took off the pen from her hands.

"Let me take care of it, would you? You stay put, while I handle the tough part."

Amy pulled her by the shirt collar for a kiss.

"But I had a good idea... We can get some explosives, blow up that club and send Gaius, Jameson and the whole gang to space."

"You've been watching too much news on TV, little firefly," Kamilah playfully bit her earlobe, then pressed soft kisses on her neck. "Don't worry, I've got everything planned."

Kamilah grabbed her notebook and started writing her own notes. She had the prettiest handwriting Amy had ever seen in her life. She read the first word: 'Turning'. She smiled.

The female vampire proceeded with the next step of her planning sheet.

"Training," Amy read. "And then... Elope?"

"And the last..." Kamilah added, "Sweden."

Amy took the notes and started to adding some details.

"Right, Ms. Sayeed, CEO of Ahmanet Financial. What will be doing to this little company of yours?"

"I'll sell it," Kamilah was decided. "I can start something new. Something related to botany, perhaps."

"Will we have pets in our new home?" Amy asked.

"Cats. Many of them."

"Uhhh... children?"

"It's too soon to decide it, don't you think?"

"Hell yeah," Amy tossed the notepad aside. "We have a lot to enjoy before that."

Kamilah smiled before involving her in a warm, passionate kiss. Meanwhile, all Amy could think was about how excited she was for the weekend, when she'd become a Vampire.

----------

Lysimachus

"It has stopped spreading," he announced, examining Priya's wound. "It seems like Amy's blood has truly worked."

Lying on his chest, the Fashion Designer gave him a weak smile. Though she was no longer losing conscience or that the wound had stopped spreading, she wasn't looking any better. She was severely weak and pale, her skin was cold as ice. Lysimachus wore his leather jacket around her body and covered her with a heavy blanket.

"Hunter, stop fooling yourself," she mumbled. "It's not working. I'm dying... I... I wonder what the tabloids will invent. They'll say I died from an overdose probably."

"I-I won't let them... I'll say you contracted a severe and deadly infection, and that you fought like a trooper until the end."

At this point, he was holding himself to not cry. He hadn't cried for centuries. Not even when Zoe died. Although she was his best and closest friend, he knew about that risk. She was a mortal Vampire Hunter. Her life was always in danger. And he didn't watch her die. He didn't have to say goodbye. One move and Adrian broke her neck, far from his sight. Because he was busy, chasing Priya.

"Hey," he called, trying to keep her awake. "Last year, in your club, why didn't you kill me when you had the chance?"

"You're a bastard, like me, Hunter. I knew that at some point you could be useful."

"Fair enough."

"What about you?" Priya asked back. "That night in Amsterdam, why didn't you kill me?"

Lysimachus sighed.

"I knew that at some point you could be useful. And because I thought you were pretty."

"Oh, so you had mercy on pretty female Vampires?

"You were one of the rare exceptions."

She let out a small, weak laugh.

After a long moment of silence, Lysimachus felt her hand touching his under the covers.

"Hunter?" She called. "I'm afraid. Though it's something I'd never admit, but I am."

"Y-You don't have to be," he wanted to tell her that soon she'd be cured, but at this point, both of them knew it was useless to sugarcoat reality.

"What do you think that happens to Vampires after their death? Especially the baddies."

"I've never thought of this before."

"My people believe in reincarnation. This is what I'm afraid of, I don't wanna be born a dalit again."

"If you do," he kissed her forehead, "I'll find you and I'll rescue you."

"How are you going to find me, stupid?"

"Simple, I'll look for the girl who can make awesome clothes and snatch wigs."

Seeing Priya genuinely smile again made a single tear fall down from his eyes. He noticed her eyes were teary too.

"We never finished that conversation."

"We don't have to."

"Okay... at least I figured out what was missing."

He held her even tighter, appreciating his final moments with her. Thinking about the life he was willing to show her. A life she never knew... A knock on the door brought him back to reality.

"Lysimachus," his witch friend shouted, "I know why she hasn't been fully cured yet! There's one more thing."

"What is it?"

"I was speaking to Jax and he told me that feeding from someone that the Vampire has an emotional connection may help delaying the transformation."

"Goodbye, cruel world," Priya mocked from the bed.

After the witch left, Lysimachus sat by her side.

"No one?" He sighed. "Not even... Sergio?"

"Sergio, Hunter?!" Priya rolled her eyes. "Are you joking or you're really this dumb?"

"I know," he ran a hand through his dark hair. "I'm only trying to think of a manner to save you. I meant it when I said I care about you."

Priya studied his face for a second, before inhaling deeply.

"If you ever tell this anyone, I'll kill you."

She sank her fangs into his neck, drawing a large amount of blood, for long minutes.

Lysimachus wasn't sure of how much of that was real, but his only choice was to wait and pray that Priya's body would fight off the infection by itself.

Next: Kamilah takes Amy to the Hamptons to Turn her, but will things go as expected? Stay tuned!

[daggerzine]

The Dot comes before the Dash- the Danny Ingram interview.

You would see their names on the back of records, many for Washington’s DC’s Dischord label and you might see a photo every now and again, but don’t know much about them unless you were part of that scene (ie; see my previous interview with Chris Bald from a few years ago). Danny Ingram was another one of those names. I knew he’d been in some of the early Dischord bands (Youth Brigade, etc.) and knew he’d done a lot of other stuff but wasn’t exactly sure where, when or in what context (‘cept that I knew he’s a drummer). Fast forward to nearly a decade ago when I saw his name as drummer of a new Washington, DC combo named Dot Dash. Their guitarist/vocalist Terry Banks had been in some of my favorite indie pop combos, namely Tree Fort Angst and The Saturday People, so I knew I was gonna like this one (Hunter Bennett rounds out the trio on bass)! I’ve enjoyed all of their records, but this latest one, Proto Retro (released earlier this year on The Beautiful Music label) is really a special thing of beauty. Well-written rock-pop songs that are both heartfelt and fun (and catchy as hell). Back to Ingram though, he was one of the older punks on the DC scene and thus saw and heard a lot so grab your favorite beverage, your reading glasses and bathrobe and take a stroll both down memory lane and up ‘til the current day.

A man and his drums, 

 Were you born and raised in Washington, DC?

Yes – DC born and raised. Lived in SE DC until I was 12, then moved to Palisades (NW DC) where I met my life-long friend and future bandmate, Nathan Strejcek.

 At what age did you take up the drums?

I had a fascination with drums from an early age. I’d had a crush on my baby sitter, Irene, and her brother had a drum set. To impress her, I tried playing along with his Beatles records and such, even though my feet didn’t reach the pedal. It was a lost cause. But a dear family friend and neighbor in SE, Richard Spencer, nurtured my interest. I think he bought me my first drums. He played in Otis Redding’s band and achieved quite a bit of success with his own band the Winstons (he wrote the Grammy-winning song ‘color him father).  I was about 19 when I took up the drums in earnest – with the intention of being in a band. At the risk of repeating an oft-told story…I had gone to see the Clash at the Ontario theater and was hanging out in the narrow, upstairs ‘dressing room’ with the band and several other people. I was sharing a spliff and talking with Joe, Mick and (to a lesser extent because I had trouble understanding him) Paul. Joe asked if I played in a band – I told him I didn’t – but that my best friend did. He admonished me to get off the sidelines – to ‘do something – create something’ – and when Joe Strummer tells you to do something…well…you do it. Shortly thereafter I volunteered to join the Untouchables (their drummer, Richard, left for college). A few weeks after that we played our first show. This was probably in the fall of 1980.

 How did you come into contact with the Dischord Records folks? Were you a Wilson HS student as well? Yeah. I went to Wilson (briefly) and knew all the Dischord people before there was a record label (or a Teen Idles). Nathan and I were best friends and he, along with Ian and Jeff, started the label. We all grew up together and have been friends since early days.

 Do you remember the first person you ever met in the DC punk scene? What was your first punk show?

I was there at the outset and knew most-if not all-of the people before there was a scene, per se. I guess the first people I met who weren’t in our group of friends were Xyra and Cathy – they had a punk radio show at WGTB (Georgetown University radio) called Revolt into Style. Nathan and I used to sneak out of our houses and go down for their shows after our parents went to sleep. As for the first concert? Hard to say. I saw so many bands in those early days –one of the first was probably the Ramones in the fall of ’77. I worked at the Atlantis and at the 9:30 club when it first opened up – so I saw almost every show that came through the DC area for many years. Also, I was a smidge older…so coupled with my fake ID I was able to get into places like the Bayou as well.

Youth Brigade (Danny is 2nd from left)

 From what I know you’re a bit older than some of the other DC punks, were you there early enough to go to places like Madam’s Organ and the Hard Art Gallery?  (places I only know about from pictures, usually of the Bad Brains).

Tell me about how/when The Untouchables formed? Was that your first band?

…and please tell us about the origins of Youth Brigade?

I was born in 1961 – so it makes me a about a year older than Ian and Jeff and six months older than Nathan. I never really considered myself older. Now, Boyd and the guys in Black Market Baby were fucking old! Most of em born in the 50’s! J Seriously though – we were all roughly in the same age group – though I think Xyra (who was a bit older) referred to that initial scene (affectionately – not anatomically) as teeny punks or baby punks.  My first band was the Untouchables. As noted above, Richard had split and moved off to college. I was sitting at the Roy Rogers with Eddie, Alec and (I think) Bert as they lamented the loss of their drummer and the prospect of breaking up. I jokingly volunteered to take his place. They immediately said ‘yes’ despite my warnings that I’d never really played the drums. A few weeks later we played our first show. We hung together for almost a year before splitting up. After that was Youth Brigade. Nathan had been the singer of the Teen Idles – but when the band split, it seemed only natural that Nathan and I should start a band together. We’d been best friends for years and had very similar life arcs and musical tastes. We tried out a few guitarists (including Jason of 9353) and one other bassist (Greg) before finally settling on the line-up that most people know with Tom on Guitar and my old friend and former Untouchable mate, Bert on bass.  As for Madam’s Organ or Hard Art? I played at Madam’s Organ – and I was at the infamous Bad Brains show at Hard Art. I can’t remember if I ever played there…but it’s entirely possible. You would have to consult with Bert or Alec or someone whose memory isn’t a shambles.

 Madhouse backstage

Was Madhouse next? They were a bit different right? A darker sound.

I was in a few bands before Madhouse. I played in a band with Dave Byers and Toni Young (from Red C) called Peer Pressure. Tom Berard (scenester) also sang with the band for a while. We recorded a demo up in NY with the bad brains at 171A. We played a handful of shows but, like so many other bands of that era, split up and moved on to other projects.  I also played in a band called Social Suicide – great guys and a fun band (featured Joey A who went on to Holy Rollers). Also short lived – but we did record some songs for a local compilation ‘mixed nuts don’t crack’.  OH – I also briefly tried my hand at singing in a VERY short-lived band called black watch. This featured future members of madhouse (Brad Gladstone on bass and the mega-talented Norman van der Sluys on drums). The less said about this the better. Not because of the band – but because my singing can curdle milk at twenty paces.

I was starting to get a bit antsy with the way the DC scene was evolving – so my then girlfriend (Monica Richards) and I decided to start a band that was more rooted in post punk bands like killing joke, magazine and the monochrome set. That was how madhouse started. But unsurprisingly enough, there was no scene for this band, so we still played mostly punk and hardcore shows – but the direction we tried to take didn’t really sit well with a lot of new, burgeoning scene.  It seems, at least from afar, that you were willing to go in other directions musically (goth, etc.) whereas maybe some of your DC co-horts stuck to the punk rock thing. Would this be accurate? Did you get flack for it?

Yeah – I guess it was a bit gothy. Certainly, that was Monica’s m.o. I’ve always considered myself a punk – no matter what kind of band I played in. But this was definitely the beginning of stretching musical wings. And, yeah, we caught flack for it. But it wasn’t anything I couldn’t handle. Monica caught the most grief – and that is exactly why we both were getting put off by what the scene was turning into. I’ll just leave it at that. That said – my friends, the ones I’d known from the outset, were all cool. Otherwise I wouldn’t have spent some time drumming for Iron Cross with another life-long friend, Sab.

Strange Boutique (not ready to dine and (dot) dash) 

 Was Strange Boutique next? If so how/when did that band form and what was its history?

Yes – Strange Boutique (a name I copped from the Monochrome Set song/album) was next up. It was still Monica and me – but while Madhouse tried to straddle the punk scene with whatever it was we were trying to do – Strange Boutique basically said ‘fuck it’ and dove headfirst into what was certainly a more goth-punk-pop sound. The Chameleons, Siouxsie, Cure and bands of that ilk were really influencing us a lot and the quality of the band grew exponentially with the addition of Fred Smith and Steve Willett. -- I should pause here to note that I’ve lost a few friends and bandmates along the way – like Toni Young. But two hit particularly hard: Fred Smith – who was a true original. A crazy fucker. Much loved and much missed no matter how much trouble he got me into! And John Stabb – My brother in every sense of the word. Someone I loved until the end and who was a never-ending source of insanity, humor and energy. John and Fred were both unique spirits…and it’s just not the same without them.

Swervedriver- not huffin’ and puffin’ 

radioblue in black and white 

 Pardon my ignorance (I know it was some years) but was there anything between Strange Boutique and Dot Dash?

There were a few bands after Strange Boutique. I played in radioblue who, like strange boutique, were a band on the outside of the dc hardcore scene. They were more 60s-influenced indie pop (byrds, beatles, beach boys, buzzcocks). It led to drumming in a Mark Helm (a singer/guitarist in the band) project called Super 8 and playing on his solo album (on not lame records). I also started a band called King Mixer AGES ago with Steven Engel and James Lee (the bassist and singer/guitarist from radioblue). We still get together to this day, but it’s more like the monthly poker game: play some music, have dinner, hang out and catch up with old friends. We did put out a self-released CD years ago, but Dot Dash came along, and that has monopolized my time for the last seven years. I also played in Swervedriver for about a year, relocating to London for about ten months. It was an amazing experience. Adam Franklin (the singer / song writer) is the greatest musician I’ve ever played with. And as far as I am concerned Adam is in the pantheon of great song-writers of the last 40 years. Glad to still call him and my old swervie bandmates friends. A lifetime of memories crammed into a short period of time! When I moved back to DC from London at the end of 1992 I played in two more bands. The first was the criminally obscure UltraCherry Violet. They were definitely in the mold of swervedriver and some other favorites from that era. The band was Dugan Broadhurst and Dan Marx (who later played in king mixer). We played a handful of shows before I imploded. We got together a year after we split to record some songs for posterity – and those were ultimately released on Bedazzled records (a label I started while in strange boutique – but by now taken over by Steve Willett). There are a few songs on that CD that are among the things I’m most proud of as a musician.  I also played with my old running mates and brothers-in-arms John Stabb and Steve Hansgen (and Rob Frankel) in a band called Emma Peel. THAT was fun! We really clicked together musically – and we recorded a single on our good friend John Lisa’s label Tragic Life. The Avenging Punk Rock Godfathers! This web of connections is what led Steve to joining Dot Dash further down the road.  The last thing I did before Dot Dash was drumming in the legendary local mod band Modest Proposal, with old friends Neal Augenstein and Bill Crandall (who shortly thereafter was part of the original Dot Dash line-up). Steve Hansgen had played with Neal and Bill during an early incarnation – and he and I comprised the rhythm section for and MP reunion show.

Emma Peel (Danny is far right and that is the late, great John Stabb, 2nd from left) 

Do tell us about your current band Dot Dash? I think the records have been terrific. How did you meet Terry and Hunter?

Thanks for the kind words about the DD records. Right now, the band is a three-piece: me on drums, Terry Banks on vocals and guitar and Hunter Bennett on bass. Terry has been in almost as many bands as me – playing in a lot of indie-pop bands like Saturday People, Glo-Worm and Tree Fort Angst. Hunter was a veteran of the Stabb band among others.  I didn’t really know either of them before we started the band…but I knew of them from their previous band Julie Ocean (the band also had Jim Spellman of Velocity Girl on guitar/vocals and Alex Daniels from Swiz on drums). Julie Ocean released a great record on Transit of Venus – and they should have been huge. JO had planned to go on tour with a band called Magnetic Morning (that was my old friend Adam Franklin and Interpol drummer Sam Fogarino’s side-project), but drummer-Alex, bailed on the tour. So, that night at the Rock n Roll Hotel, Terry asked if I wanted to play drums in a new project with him and Hunter. I said yes – after consulting with my wife, Sally – but it actually took another six months or so to get rolling (I had already promised to do the Modest Proposal reunion). As it turned out, Jim was planning on leaving JO as well (taking a job in Colorado) – but when he came back he played briefly in Dot Dash (between Bill and Steve).  Dot Dash has been the most prolific band I’ve ever played with and the longest running active band. We’ve put out six CD’s on the Canadian label, The Beautiful Music. It’s run by an amazing guy – Wally Salem. I’m not sure that we would still be going without his love and support! Truthfully – I also do it for my kids (Noah 12 and Sam 16). I think it’s good to show them that you can do fun and creative things at any age. Sam has really taken it to heart. He’s been playing guitar since he was 10 and is already a better musician than I ever will be! He’s already formed and broken up his first band – and he filled in for Hunter (on bass) at one of our shows…picking up the songs with relative ease and aplomb. 

Almost forgot the Social Suicide pic (Danny’s the UK Subs fan)

What’s next for Dot Dash? Another record in the works? Maybe a tour?  I don’t know about touring. I think we would all love to do it – but because we all have demanding jobs, families and such – it makes it difficult to pick up and run off. That said, if the right opportunity presented itself (like going on a tour with a band we love) I think we would certainly consider it. We’ve been REALLY fortunate to play with some bands that have long been heroes/favorites: the Chameleons, Ash, Hugh Cornwell (of the Stranglers), the Monochrome Set, Stiff Little Fingers, the Dickies, DOA and so on – I think if any of them said ‘let’s do it’ we’d be packing our bags! As for another record? Well – we just released our sixth. And it is definitely the record I’m most proud of. Geoff Sanoff did an amazing job producing it – he also produces the Julie Ocean album – and it’s probably the best batch of songs Terry has written to-date.  We are always cranking out new songs – and already have a few in hand – but I think we want to enjoy the last release, Proto Retro, for a bit. 

Dot Dash with Sam on bass. 

What’s happening in Washington, DC these days musically? Any new bands we need to hear about? The great thing about DC is that it is like the Hydra of Lerna – every time a band breaks up, two new ones start up again! The scene has been regenerating for ages. And there are a lot of great bands still plugging away – The Messthetics with my old friend and Brendan Canty, Miss Lonelyhearts, Foxhall Stacks (with Jim Spellman), Nathan’s band the Delarcos, any band with Chris Moore (an epic drummer) such as the Rememberables or Coke Bust, Anna Connolly’s new project or the new project with Ian, Joe Lally and Amy Farina. Old or young – the scene here is still vibrant and vital.

 Any final thought? Closing comments? Anything you wanted to mention that I didn’t ask?

Obviously, most people know DC for the great music (bad brains, minor threat, fugazi, 9353, government issue, fire party, faith, rites of spring, tommy keene) – but to me, the best thing about it has been the friendships…which for me have been practically life-sustaining. You can’t have a great scene without great people – and to me the people I’ve known along the way simply are the best.

 BONUS QUESTION:  What are your top 10 desert island discs (I know some people don’t like when I ask this questions so I decided to put it as a bonus) Wow. Tough one. My top ten has about ten thousand records in it. So, it really is dependent on my mood at the time. I’ll try to throw it together…but if you ask on another day it might be a different batch. Because I’m old – I’m going to take the liberty of picking a baker’s dozen.  Adam and the Ants – Dirk Wears White Sox (original on Do It records) Art Ensemble of Chicago – Les Stances a Sophie J.S. Bach – Air on the G String Buzzcocks – Spiral Scratch ep (rip Pete Shelley) Chameleons – Script of the Bridge (or Strange Times) Miles Davis – ‘Round About Midnight Al Green – Greatest Hits Kinks – Something Else The La’s – The La’s  Punishment of Luxury – Laughing Academy Red Cross – Posh Boy ep Swervedriver – 99th Dream Zombies – Odyssey and Oracle

 www.dotdashdc.bandcamp.com

www.thebeautifulmusic.com 

(**all photos posted with permission from the Danny Ingram collection- if you took one of these please do let us know so we can credit. Thank you). 

Thank you very much Danny Ingram (from publisher/editor Tim)!

Dot Dash tearin’ down the house. 

[random-imagines-blog]

Someone Dangerous: A Toni Topaz Story [Chapter Four]

Wordcount: 3093 Summary: The Devil’s Advocates execute an escape plan for Toni, Jughead and SweetPea from the Ghoulies. Warning: Contains violence. Other Chapters: Chapter One, Chapter Two, Chapter Three, Chapter Five, Final Chapter

An emergency meeting had been called in the bowling alley. It had been ‘closed for a personal event’ for the night, that way civilians wouldn’t come in and catch any of the conversation, but it would also explain the amount of cars that were parked in the lot. The lights were out except for the ones near the entrance, since no one was actually playing the game. It was much too serious a meeting to be distracted by balls rolling and pins clanking down. Lyn was sitting on top of one of the racks of bowling balls, picking at her bottom lip and fiddling with her wrist band at the same time, trying to come up with a way to get the rest of the Devil’s Advocates to help her get Toni back, without manipulating them into doing something dangerous.

“The Ghoulies deserve all the pain that they can get, but I don’t understand why we gotta break into their headquarters and get the Serpents outta there.” One of the women said, chewing on gum. She blew a bubble obnoxiously and as it popped, Lyn winced. “We ain’t against them but that doesn’t mean we’re with them.”

“Three people, yes Serpents,” Lyn spoke up, getting the attention of the chattering crowd. “Have been kidnapped because they were suspected of doing what we had done.”

“So?” The woman said.

“So?” Lyn said back, turning her head to look at the woman straight on. “Are we just going to let three innocent people go through torture because of what we did? Even if they know that we’re a rival gang, those three people are going to be questioned, put through tests, who knows what else the Ghoulies have in store for them? Whatever it is - they don’t deserve it. Just like our loved ones didn’t deserve what those bastards put them through. If you don’t feel comfortable with a rescue mission, I’m not going to force you. But when you joined in The Devil’s Advocates, you swore to take them down. This is a good enough start to that, now isn’t it? Take what they have. Release their prisoners. They won’t have any power over any gang after that. Maybe we can do it without their knowing, make them suspect one of their own, I don’t know. But I’m saying, as your leader, that this is the beginning of their end. This is our chance. I’m taking it. Who is with me?”

The difference between the other two gangs and the Devil’s Advocates was one thing: The type of people that had joined. Not everyone in this bowling alley was tough, covered in tattoos, looked intimidating at all or decked out in leather. It was made of people who would do anything that was necessary to return Riverdale and the surrounding area to the way that it had been before the Ghoulies had come around and fucked it up. Parents, cousins, all sorts of relatives of people who had been killed or hurt or affected by the spooky gang gathered here. Lyn had looked them all up. There were a couple of married couples, construction workers, business owners, janitors, nurses, just about every profession in Riverdale had some representation here, and all were determined to end this evil. But still - they were reluctant.

“The main reason for a devil’s advocate-” Lyn went on, picking up one of the smooth, heavy bowling balls and held it in her hands, squeezing it to feel the resistance in her arms. “- is to take all sides. All arguments into consideration. Why should we save these three serpents? They’re part of a rival gang, they could be dangerous, they could expose us, this could just be a rouse. But there’s also the other two sides of it.” She spun the ball so the three holes were revealed to the people in front of her. She tapped one of them, then another. “If we let the Serpents go in, it’ll get messy. They have their reasons to hate the Ghoulies, the bunch of traitors. Some of them will likely be killed by being reckless and going in guns blazing, not thinking the way that we would. They might get their three back, they might not. They might lose a large number of their gang and that’s more lives given to the Ghoulies. But if we do our research, and we go? They know nothing about us, our techniques, our resources, they’re sure to underestimate us. We could get in, get out, learn, experience, and save three people. We may even get the respect of the Serpents, have another force on our side.” She put the bowling ball back on the rack. “Consider every possibility, but I have a mission for a few of you if you take my perspective. I’ll know by tomorrow afternoon who is in and who isn’t, and no blame or shame from me to those who stay out of it. You’d feel it for yourselves eventually.”

When Lyn arrived home from a lonely day at Riverdale High, there were two envelopes slipped beneath her door, waiting for her to open. They were delivered by Alec, the only member that she trusted with her home address. She opened up the one which had what appeared to be a sign up sheet. That was a good sign. There were many names. Her speech got through to many of her people, and they had taken up the cause. She believed that they did so because she had given them the choice. She was not a demanding gang leader, like those she had encountered in the past. She was inexperienced and young, but she was firm. She always thought through what she was doing.

The second envelope was thicker and contained printouts from a real estate agency that one of her members worked for - an unassuming man to say the least but one of the most helpful. It was a list of properties that seemed to fit where the Ghoulies may be. She put aside any that were on the South Side, the Serpents would have come across them and done something about it. Nor would they be in central Riverdale or the suburbs because the well-to-do citizens wouldn’t stand for anything like that.

Which left one option. A Lodge Industries property, interestingly enough. Lyn thought of Veronica Lodge, the luxuriously dressed girl who had been kind to her, but seemed distracted by assuring Betty and Archie that wherever Jughead was, he would be alright. The DA  had to get on this before the foolish redhead and the snooping blonde went and got themselves killed trying to take care of it themselves.

The property had attempted to be a lodge, funny, Lyn thought, by Sweetwater River. A place for hunters to relax and rent out and talk about their kills. It had only been open for a month before a forest fire in the surrounding area had taken it out. And due to Hiram Lodge’s imprisonment, and Hermione Lodge’s affair, not much had been done to the property except it becoming condemned by Mayor McCoy and a few signs put up. Seemed like just the place the Ghoulies would live - a haunted-looking, gritty, black house that was little more than ash and some timber.

She memorized the information, went into her bedroom and got on her knees on the second-hand red rug beside her bed. Reaching under, she pulled out a luggage case that she had used to bring her clothes in, unzipped it, then took out a shoebox. In the shoebox was a hairdryer with the electrical cord tied tight around it. Fetching the screwdriver that was in the pocket of the luggage case, she wedged the two sides open and revealed the pistol that was inside. It may just come in handy tonight, though she would pray that she would not have to use it.

But to get Toni back, she intended to use any means necessary.

Fourteen people on a rescue mission for three teenagers against who knows how many gang members wielding weapons, the least of which was a baseball bat or a taser. One of Lyn’s members had ordered devil’s masks from a Halloween Store, and they had been delivered right on time. Most of the gang wanted their identities hidden from the masses, preferring to stay behind the scenes rather than in the forefront.

Four cars took them to the woods, parked in a popular camping area, and then started the trek to the old lodge. Lyn was walking the fastest, the gun secured in a holster around her thigh, and a large gavel-looking hammer in her hands, ready to beat down on some ghoulie head.

The night was quiet. Snow was threatening to fall soon, which made the air feel chilly beneath the dark and cloudy night. The leaves were dead on the ground and caused quite a bit of rustling, especially as the gang members stepped on them. But they were unafraid, all fourteen of them. They were going to secure the innocent,  bring them back to their friends and families and then make sure that this never happens again.

There was a large fire and some whooping noises. The Ghoulies were having themselves a damn party outside of their ‘home’. The flashing flames brought out the shadows in the red masks that the Devil’s Advocates were wearing, and Lyn had never felt more secure in her role as a leader than she did now. They stopped by the trees, crouched low and watched, waiting for their moment.

Jughead, Sweet Pea, and Toni were handcuffed and tied up - The Ghoulies were being precautious - and were forced to sit on a log dangerously close to the fire. Two of the Ghoulies seemed to be questioning them, while the rest danced around in a frenzy which was more intimidating than the interrogation. Lyn couldn’t hear what was being said, but could hear Sweet Pea give a sarcastic answer. In retaliation of that, the two inquisitors kicked the log closer to the fire so they could feel the flames licking at their trapped hands.

“What are we doing, boss?” Alec asked.

“Making a dramatic entrance. They’ll expect something sneaky is going on if we do that, and some of their numbers might leave to look for our reinforcements. Makes smaller groups out of them all. I’ll untie the Serpents. We’ll blindfold them, bring them to the city, let them loose there so they can find their own way home. I don’t want any of you getting exposed for this.”

As Alec had said, Lyn was the boss, so the others followed suit and went with your plan.

To the Ghoulies, it must have looked like an odd Halloween prank. From the shadows emerged fifteen figures, all wearing black except for the blood-red Devil masks that were adorning their faces. Some of the Ghoulies did a double take, which let the group move in further before any action was taken.

They eventually did spring into action, gathering around their three hostages. Malachai, their leader with his wanna-be KISS paint on his face, had a taser in his hand, which he held up menacingly, the electricity flowing enough to show as a wavering blue line. “Not the right time of year for Halloween.” He laughed, menacingly.

“Could say the same thing about you,” Lyn said, taking another step closer. She disguised her voice, making it deeper than it usually was, in as much a Batman-style as she could muster. “Or is there a metal show going on nearby that I don’t know about?”

“Devil’s go jokes now?” Malachai asked, matching Lyn’s stride. “Let’s see how much you’ll be laughing when I send electricity through your body.” He lunged forward with the taser, nearly striking Lyn who had been prepared for it. She ducked out of the way, held tight to the hammer in her hand and hit Malachai square in the ribs. His growl was enough to send the rest of the Ghoulies into the fight.

Alec came up behind Lyn and took over the fight against the leader of the Ghoulies while she adjusted her mask so the eye-holes were realigned. She kept her sights on Toni, and headed in her direction. She was almost stopped by one of the Ghoulies, but another well-placed hit sent them away from her path.

She was by the flames now, and using their light to undo some of the bindings keeping them onto the logs. But the handcuffs would have to stay until they got into the city and found a way to cut them off. She didn’t have anything sharp enough to take care of that, though they seemed more like adult-store handcuffs than police handcuffs.

Sweet Pea was the first to get unbinded, and though his wrists were stuck together, he helped out with the others. “Go down through the woods in the direction of the moon.” Lyn muttered so they could hear. “We’ll meet you there and bring you back to town, drop you off at a secure location.”

“So you’re the Devil’s Advocates?” Jughead asked, always questioning things. Lyn’s eyes shone through the eyeholes of the mask as they linked their gazes together. Lyn was the first to turn away, then she said nothing. She was more careful to avoid Toni’s eye. That would get her caught for sure.

“Yes,” Lyn said in the same voice as before. “Now go on while we settle things here. Go.”

Toni was the only one who was hesitant to go. She watched as Lyn left the log and went back to Malachai. It was only through the urging of Jughead that she finally walked towards the trees and slipped off to the highway.

One of the Devil’s had brought a handgun. On Lyn’s signal, she pulled it out, pointed it towards the sky, and fired a single shot which made the action stop. Eyes were turned towards the woman, who then pointed silently towards her leader. Lyn stood across from Malachai.

“We got what we came for, and no one else needs to get hurt tonight.” She said, her voice strong enough to carry throughout the Ghoulie’s camping area. “This isn’t the scene of our battle, Malachai, but that is coming up soon. The gunshot is likely to bring the police up in a couple of minutes so I suggest you run along and hide until they pass over. We’ll be in touch.”

Sure enough, the flashing lights were seen through the woods just as the sirens could be heard, but by that time, Lyn and the rest of her Advocates were safely in their cars. The three Serpents were in with Alec and Lyn, who had pulled up their hoods to hide their identity better. Alec would be identifiable by his ponytail alone.

“Pull over here.” Lyn said, once they got close to the Whyte Wyrm. It could be seen at the end of the street, but no one from inside of the bar peering out the windows would be able to read the license plate. Alec pulled over, Lyn got out of the car and helped the three handcuffed Serpents out of the backseat.

“Why did you help us?” Jughead asked, and Toni looked at her imploringly, waiting for answers.

“The Serpents aren’t our enemies.” Lyn told them. “Especially you two. It’s the Ghoulies that we hate, and we have our own reasons for that. We don’t want them to hurt any more people.”

“Who are you?” Toni asked. Sweet Pea had already started walking towards the bar, angry that he was still in the handcuffs. He didn’t need to do all the questioning, he was more of a hands on sort of guy, or so Lyn had noticed.

The leader of the Devil’s Advocates stopped cold, wondering whether she should go with her brain or her instincts on this one. Should she reveal herself and lose the trust of the only friend that she had in this town? Would it be putting the others at risk? Or should she keep hiding herself, remaining in the shadows.

She decided.

She undid the straps on the back of her head, releasing the mask from her face. Her hair fell down from the confines that it had been in so that it wouldn’t be seen by anyone who may identify her. She shook it out, then brushed it out of her face with her fingers and looked at Toni straight on.

“Don’t tell anyone, and don’t ask me any questions right now. We just put ourselves in danger to get the three of you out and ... and we need to come up with our next steps, okay?” She pleaded with Jughead and Toni. Jughead was surprised, but he adjusted to it well.

“No questions now, but there will be later.” He said. “And - thanks.” He seemed reluctant to give the last word. It was clear he didn’t trust you now, but that was fine. He didn’t have to. He only had to keep his mouth shut.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Toni asked, once Jughead had started to walk away. The fact that she was still in handcuffs didn’t bother her anymore. She took a step forward towards Lyn, so much so that Lynn could smell the fire’s smoke on her clothing.

“No questions, please.” Lyn frowned. “I can answer anything tomorrow, but just not -”

“I trusted you, I thought you were my friend.”

“I just risked my life and those of my gang to save yours, you think I’m not your friend?” Lyn asked.

“Bring me with you.” Toni said, after a minute of silence. “To your house. Get these cuffs off me and we’ll talk there. Either that or I’m following your car because - because I need answers from you. Tonight.”

Lyn looked to the car where Alec was waiting. He was still wearing his mask. His eyes peering through the holes were dark, and lifeless. He was exhausted.

“Okay, get in the back.” Lyn sighed.

[whitefangworldbuilding]

RWBY: The Rise of Sienna Khan (Headcanon)

This catalogs the White Fang during their time as a diplomatic organization and their evolution into a para-military force under the leadership of Sienna Khan, as well as the details of what brought about these changes.

After the Faunus Rights Revolution came to a close and the White Fang was formed, those who had distinguished themselves were offered new ranks and roles in the fledgling order.

Some, like Kali Belladonna, exhausted from combat and high level politics, turned the offers down to rest and recover falling into less charged supportive roles. 

Others, such as Sienna and Ghira, took to their roles with passion.

The first High Leader of the White Fang (Unnamed) was an elder and a Holy One, revered for their knowledge of ancient Faunus culture and wise council during the revolution. The elder had been integral in negotiating a ceasefire and being popular and respected on most sides was a natural choice as leader. 

They chose Ghira to be one of their diplomatic seconds, while asking Sienna to be the new head of the White Fang’s security, a position she accepted gratefully.

Over the course of the next few years Sienna spent her time training and organizing the White Fang’s security forces. Even going so far as to create a hidden class of ‘watchers’, Faunus who could escape notice or pass for human who disguised themselves and kept watch on the streets to report back suspicious activity or jump in to protect isolated Faunus under attack.

She also began more casual self defense programs, feeling no Faunus should be unable to defend themselves. While not popular with some of the more peaceful members, the voluntary nature of the program allowed it to continue.

It was not many years before the White Fang's leader stepped down however, promoting Ghira as their replacement. (The current High Leader was aging and tired of politicking) There was a brief election but no real challenger stepped up.

Thing continued along there well known path for several years, in that time, one Blake Belladonna was born, Ilia would find herself orphaned and taken into the White Fang and Adam Taurus would catch several security force members eyes for his talent in combat.

However, threats were everywhere.

Three overt threats stood in the way of the White Fang’s mission and Faunus equality.

1. Indifference. With each year that passed, the number of politicians, councilor, new programs ETC that bothered to meet with the White Fang, let alone offer funding, vanished to the point of near non existence. Leaving the organization dependent on grass roots fund raising. The media narrative quickly stopped viewing the White Fang as a diplomatic organization and instead as 'rabble-rousers’ just one of many groups of Faunus that could be dismissed as a 'noise makers’ and 'thugs’.

2. Human supremacy groups. Where most humans were content to ignore Faunus or passively benefit from their disenfranchisement, for these groups that was not enough. They loathed how the last war turned out, hated that Faunus walked “their” streets and worked 'their" jobs in “Their” kingdoms, (The irony that Faunus built said Kingdoms was lost on them) These groups were organized thanks to the CCT, often had friends in the police, militia and hunting communities often proving extremely violent.

3. The SDC and other large companies found ways around the Faunus’s 'on paper’ legal equality. Utilizing faulty contracts, biased work assignments (Sending Faunus to poorly equipped and dangerous mines) and going so far as to create debt programs where they made basic supplies at their mines so expensive the workers would either starve of go into debt just to stay alive and be forced to work unfair hours just to break even. (They often needed to do this slowly to avoid immediate emotional backlash luring in the Grimm, but once instituted the exhaustion would stop any overly large masses of Grimm from affecting the mines,)

As mine accidents, tales of families torn apart and abuse revelations spread through the kingdoms the White Fang pushed for recognition and aid, but were ignored.

Many police and hunter abused their power and struck down innocent Faunus, but when the White Fang asked for justice, they were ignored.

When Human Supremacy organization burnt stores and attacked Faunus, Faunus were blamed or the humans found innocent of all wrong doing.

Calls for unity, respect and common decency made in passionate speeches and chanted in streets were never broadcast or met by tear gas and riot police. Faunus defending themselves and others were blamed for starting the conflicts by the media 

Into this, the previous High Leader stepped in and with their carefully cultivated connections began to arrange for some improvements. However, their life was threatened by human supremacy groups.

Sienna Khan asked, nay pleaded, to allow her to assign a full escort to ensure their safety, but she was argued down.

“Show you expect the worst and that is what people will often give you. But show hope and openness and you may just be surprised” the former leader and Ghira argued.

Sienna held the opposite view. Feeling preparing for the worst would better let one meet it and cow those who would be too fearful to act should they know they would be met by resistance.

However she was only able to assigned a small group of Watchers to the former High Leader.

Within a week, Human Supremacy members, in hand with 'rogue’ police, raided their house and killed the retired High Leader. The Watchers too few and reinforcements too far to act.

Grief, gripped the White Fang and Faunus communities. The scene of Kali, Ghira and Sienna standing in the former High Leaders room, before their body were burnt into people’s memories; the sobs and growls that filled the house forever burned into the memory of every Faunus present. As was the horrendous abuse their former High Leader had suffered in death.

Despite evidence and Gira’s demands, the police showed little interest in investigating (Sienna did not even bother asking, merely having a human passing Faunus bail her watchers out of prison). The former High Leaders allies, disappeared like puffs of smoke.

Upon returning to base, tensions were high and the grief was thick. Arguments and accusations flew before exhaustion and grim acceptance claimed even the leadership.

It was time for change.

Without warning, Sienna Khan declared a challenge before Ghira and the White Fang’s core membership as others gathered for mourning or guidance.

The humans have met the Faunus with fire and hatred since the dawn of time and have only ever listened to reason when it was accompanied by force. A noble advocate for peace and friendship was butchered in their own home, how long before they are all next? How long must their kin toil in the mines with none to offer them salvation? Because morality alone will not make the humans listen. How long must the Faunus live in fear?

Sienna Khan declared no more.

She promised not to just speak for their people but to fight for them as well. To meet those who would take their lives, their homes and their freedom with fangs and claws bared and to those with the strength and will to do so, she asked them to stand with her. Those without, she asked they stand behind her, so she might shield them and be buoyed by their support.

Ghira accepted the challenge and lost by an over 65 percent margin. After a respectful exchange of rank and power, Sienna Khan delivered a brief speech, before declaring the time for words had truly passed.

It was time to get to work.

Watchers were posted, security teams and volunteers organized and on that very night they struck at the heart of a large interconnected meeting of human supremacy organization. 

The humans celebrated the death of the High Leader and plotted next the death of other high ranking White Fang, whether for their rank, Ghira, power, Sienna, or seeming vulnerability, Kali. All with the intent of beginning a new Faunus war.

They got the battle they were seeking.

The power was cut and only the Scrolls connecting the other meeting members in the crammed stdio apartment shone.

Then, a new light glowed, a furious, churning red as Sienna revealed herself and struck, followed by her soldiers.

The battle was over within minutes, and to those watching, she had but one message: Human kind had not listened to reason, so they would know fear.

What followed was at first treated like a gang war, then riots, then a burgeoning revolution.

Stores that served as human supremacy bases or supporters or that denied Faunus were burnt. High ranking Human Supremacy members found themselves cut down and even the mighty SDC was not safe as mine overseers and those that oversaw the deaths of debt slavery of thousands of Faunus were found dead.

Sienna was careful though, she had accrued this information over years of long work as a byproduct of her duties as head of security. When she and her forces struck it was quickly efficiently and always on specific targets, with their motives and reasons laid out clearly when needed to minimize collateral damage to civilians and to avoid undermining their cause. 

As the violence rose, Ghira and Kali Belladonna returned to Menagerie but left their daughter who refused to join them under Sienna Khan’s aegis.  

Then, before a true war could break out, the White Fang scattered, went to ground  and snuck out of the kingdoms, coming to recollect at Fort Castle.

From this fort, mine liberation were organized, supply trains raided and their underground units within the kingdoms funneled their soldiers back in and new recruits joined in earnest, while Sienna Khan reached out to Faunus communities deep in the wilds to offer the White Fang’s aid.

The Shadow War of the White Fang had begun.

[secretadventuresociety]

Episode 28 Recap

Hail and well met, SASholes!! I’m Bren, resident SAStorian and your favorite Dungeons and Dragons fangirl. Welcome to Episode 28: In The Shadows.

Ding, Dong, the Dick is Dead

We pick back up with Kess and Pearce standing inside the bedroom of the now dead Xarus. An awkward silence tugs between our two heroes before Pearce raises his hand to Kess in the request of the highest of fives. She leaves the boy hanging (bad form, Kessandria…) and attempts to discern how long her ex-fiance has been deceased. Be it nerves, shock, or pleasure-- neither she nor Pearce can pinpoint an estimated time of death. However, Kess still begs Sienna to hand over her diamond ring, which she eventually does once the changeling reveals her plans. Kess takes the engagement jewel and casts Revivify. The gem shatters, covering a still-lifeless bag of di-- well. Too soon to speak ill of the dead? A moment passes, and no change. It has been more than the sixty seconds required to bring a soul back with this low-level incantation.

Pearce pulls Sienna aside and summons his best Poirot-- interrogating her despite her (seemingly-- we trust no one!) fragile state. She admits that she was deep in sleep until Xarus began ‘trembling’, which she later clarifies as something adjacent to choking. The writhing shook her awake, just in time for her to witness her fiance leaping off the bed and collapsing almost immediately. Being unable to recall any other details, the (SEEMINGLY) broken widow asks for her ring to be returned, not questioning its ruined state. She then promptly exits the room to hurk the awkward dinner party’s contents onto the hallway tile. Kess looks after her, consumed with guilt for being unable to bring back the son of a bi-- still too soon? You guys are no fun.

Pearce listens as Kess repeats how Xarus wasn’t acting like himself-- but as she finishes, he attempts to reassure her that he deserved it, and that he was probably a bastard his whole life. Which-- frankly-- I agree with the gunslinger here. This snaps Kess out of her spiral long enough that she casts Detect Magic and roams the bedroom. The most ominous thing that stands out is a lockbox under the bed. Pearce, after noting that Xarus’ side of the bed is still warm, takes off to the bedroom he claimed with Kü to grab his lockpicking tools. He checks in on the kobold, who (in Pearce’s own words) is resting like a ‘horrifying little angel’ as Kü ferociously tears into some dream animal or another in his sleep.

Honey, I Traumatized the Kids

As Pearce meets back up with Kess at the scene of the crime, he notices the whole fam damnily is in the threshold. He pushes past, handing off his thievery set, and watches as Kess masterfully opens the glowing (possibly enchanted?? We have no idea!) box to reveal…. PAPERWORK! While every accountant is realigning the pearls that they’ve clutched-- let me tell you the most important thing in this mound of dead trees: the deed to the Shadowmore estate. The druid then spots a bottle of wine on the nightstand on Xarus’ side of the bed, which she is easily able to tell has not been tampered with in any way. Satisfied with her search (for now!), Kess walks out of the room to greet her mother-- who steps closer to her with a noticeable limp. S U S. Norse goes into mom gear before her daughter can question the ailment; demanding a magistrate be summoned and all incriminating evidence be hidden on the family wing of the house.

As Kess moves to carry out the latter of her mother’s checklist, she grabs her mother by the elbow and asks her what happened in hushed tones. The matron changeling tries to lie at first, stating that she fell down the stairs on the way down to Xarus’ bedchambers. Kess, however, sees through this lie and presses her… almost immediately wishing she hadn’t. Her mother seethes through her clenched teeth that she and her husband were very relieved to have her back home, so they were taking advantage of their alone time. You know. Naked. Thankfully, Pearce pulls Kess out of the embarrassment bubble to be able to speak with her alone as they walk up to the fourth floor and start to hide criminal paraphernalia. 

The two discuss possible culprits-- their minds going towards the supernatural. Pearce wonders about Mother and her growing presence as Kess frets about Ashe and his love of flame. Zev, having yoinked the wine from Xarus’ room, gulps it in a chill silence until the pair notice he’s there. A thread connects in Kess’ mind, and she asks her brother how long Rook had been making potions. Ever helpful, Zev shrugs and assumes about a year, then excuses himself to retire to his room. Having finished their task, Pearce and Kess decide they should do the same, probably a fantastic idea since neither of them got a long rest. For safety’s sake-- they make their way to the room where Kü is still sleeping soundly so that the whole party can be together.

That’s it, You’re all Going to Therapy

For some reason, our gunslinger decides it’s a fantastic idea to reach out and touch Kü’s faith; though the moment his finger grazes Mother’s skull, Kü awakens with a start. He mumbles in confusion about the dream he had just woken up from, then notices the darkness still blanketing the windows and asks to sleep until morning. Kess and Pearce take no time at all to wait for the kobold to get back into his REM cycle-- talking conversationally about Xarus and his fate. Kü overhears this and asks Kess which of her brothers died, not recognizing her ex-arranged-beau by name. Finally, Kü discerns that she means the ‘dickbag’ (SEE I’M NOT THE ONLY ONE WHO THINKS THAT) and promptly is uninterested. Kess asks Kü if Mother has ever come out in his sleep— he craftily avoids telling the whole truth by just admitting she is doing things she never has before. In the midst of his friends, who worry Mother may punish him for speaking out of turn, the kobold shrugs the interaction off as a dream and nods back off.

Having been newly spooked, Kess and Pearce delay their plans to rest and try to kill a little time (woof, that may be an unfortunate turn of phrase here) waiting for the magistrate. They go downstairs on a search for Pearce’s clean travelling clothes and a midnight snack. As the gunslinger dresses, Kess stares at his stained mask. She asks why there’s red marring the fabric, and he reveals that when he was first recruited into his band of bounty hunters that he attempted to make the much older members respect him by plastering the face covering with paint to simulate blood. Poor buddy. For obvious reasons, it didn’t work, but it still looks damn cool! We stan our emo king. Kess breaks off toward the kitchen and makes quite the shark coochie (if you know, you know) for the trio to share once Kü actually wakes up.

Pearce forgos any of the furniture as they make it back to the guest room, preferring to instead sleep on the floor to be alert in case of any danger. Hey-- hey buddy? Hey pal? Pearce, I hate to tell you this, but you gots some PTSD*! Our Trauma Boy (™, ™, ™,) hears footsteps with his ear resting to the floor and so is unable to really sleep. Kess builds a pillow fort around them all (while we’re diagnosing each other-- can we say arrested development?) and the overwhelming smell of raw meat (which Kess grabbed specifically for Kü) wakes up our favorite tiny terror, who digs into the offering, refusing to look a gift meat in the mouth although he was pretty sure he dreamed having a conversation with his companions. He does, however, ask if someone is truly dead-- and once confirmation is given-- he turns to Pearce and asks him how he killed Xarus, causing both indignation and amusement.

Sleeping Together

Kü tells Pearce that he would have lost a bet had he made one on who killed Xarus-- and Kess Dramatic Hamsters her gaze towards the gunslinger, having been reminded of how much money he lost her in the Underfrost. Pearce angrily replies that he left her money, but when Kess’ stare turns from intense to confused, he describes the note and the door he slipped it under. Kess recognizes the details as her parents’ room, and Pearce flies into a panic, sure that Arthur and Norse will see it and believe he is bribing them to keep quiet about his (nonexistent) part in Xarus’ murder. And what do we do when we’re upset, boys and girls? We take a Stress Nap (™, ™, ™,)! 

Our bleeding heart kobold agrees to watch over his sleeping friends, and leaves Kess and Pearce safely in their pillow fort-- closing the guest room door and pacing back and forth in front of it. Energy unwavering even after two and a half hours, Kü keeps up his post even as Norse makes her way to him, looking for the dosing duo. Kü takes special care to let her know that her daughter and Pearce are in the bedroom sleeping together-- and that he heard strange sounds coming from inside. After asking her if he should check on them, Norse awkwardly murmurs that someone is asking to speak with the three of them as soon as possible. Kü interprets ‘ASAP’ as ‘As Soon As Pearceandkesswakeup’, so the three of them descend downstairs after their long rest is completed. 

They notice the mansion staff hanging around, and enter Xarus’ chambers to see a tabaxi woman smoking a pipe standing inside. Kess immediately recognizes her as Mardosta’s local private detective and fellow Xarus-hater; Brienne. Now, I really hate to say ACAB to this probably lovely catperson; but ma’am, do we really think smoking WHERE SOMEONE WAS MURDERED IS A GOOD IDEA? Ever hear of crime scene tampering??!! Where’s David Caruso when you need him?! ANYWAY. Brienne asks for a good place to interrogate the trio, and Kü offers up Kess’ greenhouse. As the changeling leads the group there-- she outlines the rules for her safe space which basically boils down to NO TOUCHY.

Who Needs Natural 1s With Brains Like These by Fall Out Boy

Pearce pushes Kü to go first, and so the kobold grabs a turkey leg for a snack and heads in with the detective. Brienne asks about Kess and Pearce-- wondering what their relation to each other is and their feelings toward Xarus. Kü explains they’ve been travelling together for ‘some amount of time’ and that Kess was mad about Xarus being in her house, but also sad for the same reason. He then moves on to Pearce, saying that the gunslinger absolutely hated him. This, of course, attracts the tabaxi’s attention-- she asks if Kü believes his friend to be violent. Kü emphatically asserts that he is the most violent man he has ever met. Brienne takes thorough notes and Kü continues through the dinner, the Underfrost, and his brutal ass-kicking that led to him going to bed almost instantly once they returned to the mansion; but he does admit that he heard Kess and Pearce talking in hushed voices about someone being dead while he was in between sleep and waking.

The detective trades Kü out for Pearce once the kobold starts to question her about the animosity between her and the deceased-- primarily asking where she was at the supposed time of his expiration. She humors him, stating that she was at home-- passed out after her own nighttime festivities. Kü leaves the room, but not before hearing Mother congratulate him for keeping the tabaxi from suspecting anything. When Pearce enters the greenhouse, Brienne reveals Kü’s accusations about his character and asks if he had any ill will toward Xarus. Pearce, having no reason to lie, lets her know he absolutely did. This brings the tabaxi to ask him outright if he killed Xarus, to which he assured her he didn’t; no matter how much he may have hated him. Brienne is curious as to why the gunslinger hated someone he just met-- and Pearce explains that Xarus treated him and his friends like shit, and he absolutely would have retaliated had the asshole tried something in order to protect them. Brienne jots more notes down as she goes through Kü’s account; adding in Pearce’s own details (the scream, the candle blowing out), and expresses curiosity regarding the kobold’s helmet and disposition.

Pearce does admit that he would describe Kü as ‘feral’, but that he was in no state to hurt anyone or anything that night. Oh, and that YES, the skull on his head is VERY real. In return for these candid answers, Pearce asks why Brienne couldn’t stand the now dead dickbag-- and she tells him his family made their fortune collecting and selling tabaxi fur, and says she wasn’t always known as Brienne; a change that Xarus refused to acknowledge. Pearce then sends Kess in, who again recounts the night’s events-- adding that Sienna (the S E E M I N G L Y upset fiance) looked disgusted with her husband-to-be, feigns ignorance as to why Xarus would have set up residence in her home, and leaves the detective speechless as she divulges that she attempted to bring her ex back to life. Before leaving Brienne to her thoughts, Kess makes sure to impress on her how her friends may seem rough around the edges, but they have good hearts. CUE THE TEARS AND CONTINUE THE INTRIGUE!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

TL;DR

Have you connected any dots yet? Please let me know who you think the killer is because I’ve got nothing.

Reminder to never dig into your parents’ business…. or under their bed. Just trust me.

*Here is a link to the article describing the coping mechanisms of children affected by trauma (cough--PEARCE--cough): https://starr.org/2013/posttraumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd-reactions/

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Come and drink the Külaid and catch the next session over at twitch.tv/lochness on August 11th at 7:30CST/8:30EST! AND if you’d like to watch THIS episode, you can find it at the link below:

https://youtu.be/tGhm_Qq0smw?t=1254…

[bizarre-dollhouse]

My Top 10 Favourite Anime (And Why You Should Watch Them)

This is normally something I would put on my main blog, but I wanted to celebrate a follower milestone and also I know this will reach a significantly wider audience on this blog.

Consider this both a list of recommendations and a *get to know me* thing, I guess.

Honourable Mentions:

Bakemonogatari: A really stylized show about a semi vampire helping people with their supernatural afflictions born from emotional issues. The subsequent seasons get a little questionable, but this is definitely a standalone story with great dialogue and visuals. (15 eps)

Shiki: Creepy story about a small town infested with vampires. Really brutal and sick, but it has fascinating themes. The pacing is a bit slow and it has a kind of bad scene towards the end, but the show is 100% worth it. (24 eps)

Cardcaptor Sakura: Because this is mostly aimed at younger viewers, I would only really recommend this show for either magical girl fans, or people who watched the extremely altered dub as a kid. That being said, its a cute, fun show about magic with a likeable cast and surprisingly creative and original ideas, especially towards the latter half. (70 eps)

Jojos Bizarre Adventure 4: Diamond is Unbreakable: Full disclosure, I have not seen the first 3 jojo series, but its not necessary to enjoy this show. This is a super creative and really fun series about superpowered badasses in a strange city fighting each other and trying to solve a murder mystery in the background. Weird, but in the best way. (39 eps)

Kuroshitsuji: Book of Circus: This should be higher on the list, but in truth I would recommend the manga way over the show. But, if you want to watch a supernatural horror/comedy without reading a 138+ chapter manga, OR you were a fan of the original Black Butler seasons and want to see something way better, give this a watch. (10 eps)

*drumroll*

10. Trigun

So Trigun takes place is this old west, yet mysterious science fiction-y world where, through a bunch of complicated scenarios, a pacifist is the most wanted criminal known to man. Due to his status as a “natural disaster,” two insurance workers are tasked with reining him in to save their business. It’s an incredibly charming series, and the protagonist is really likeable. It’s extremely creative, funny, and emotional near the end. I do have some problems with the ending because it almost seems like the final conflict just...solves itself, but that’s a nitpick. The first episode is basically a short film, so give that a watch and see how you feel. (26 eps)

9. Paranoia Agent

This was directed by the late and great Satoshi Kon and has his usual themes about the blurring between fiction, dreams, and reality. It’s about a string of mysterious assaults committed by a kid with a baseball bat, and how these assaults seem to solve the problems of the victims. It’s very arthouse and has a twist that makes me ball my eyes out even though it’s not sad it’s just...odd and overwhelming. It drags a bit near the middle, but if you like kind of surreal stuff that’s also just really good, you have to watch this show. (13 eps)

8. Baby Steps

The amazing thing about this show is that its premise is specifically designed to make me hate it. It’s about a nerdy teenager who starts to play a sport for the sole sake of getting fit and having a more well rounded life style, and also he has a crush on this really popular girl. That sounds fucking awful, but the main character is actually really likeable (he reminds me a lot of Deku from BNHA) and I swear to fucking god every time I thought this show was going to do something awful and cliched with its romantic comedy plot, it doesn’t. The beauty and the geek trope is still there, but all of the bullshit that comes with it is omitted in a way I feel was kind of self-aware. The sports aspect is really good too: it’s well paced and there’s lots of tension even though the show as a whole is really upbeat and pleasant. I had a blast watching it, and if you can make it past the fact that is has god awful animation, give it a watch.

7. Higurashi: When They Cry

Yet another great show with absolute garbage animation. Anyways, this show is about a group of teenagers in a small town who are unknowingly trapped in a time loop. In each loop there’s a bunch of new mysteries, as well as some extremely brutal murders and tortures experienced my the main cast. I’ve seen a number of Western shows (Orphan Black, BBC Sherlock, Lost, Supernatural, etc.) fall apart because the writers want a really clever and intricate mystery to play out, but they don’t want to actually put the time into crafting one, so it’s just a bunch of cliffhangers with no answers or pay off. THIS SHOW SUCCEEDS AT WHAT ALL OF THOSE OTHER SHOWS FAIL AT. While not all of the answers are great (the second season isn’t as good) the original author somehow made the world’s most ludicrously complicated mystery story work, with a lot of it relying on the audience to put all of the pieces together even when the characters can’t. Its very clever in doing that: it makes its audience feel smart. It also has themes that don’t really show up in other horror stories, even though they’re incredibly relevant to fear and violence. Great show, go watch it. (50 eps)

6. Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood

Everyone knows about this show, everyone says it’s great, and everyone’s right. If you’ve been living under a rock for ten years: the show is about two brothers who break an alchemy taboo, which destroys their bodies, They’re on the hunt for something to restore them to normal and along the way they meet like 8990354578579 characters with interesting stories. It’s tightly written and really gripping. It’s fun, but also really dramatic and emotional when it needs to be. My only problems with it are that the ending is reaaaallllly convoluted, and there’s a minor plot point earlier on that gets weirdly dropped, but everyone kinda forgets about those things because the show’s so good. Also the brotherly bond makes me cry. (64 eps)

5. FLCL

I honestly don’t even know where to start with this show because it has the unique property of being the only show I have ever seen that I have literally no problems with. Not even nitpicks. There is nothing wrong with this show; it’s perfect. The only reason it’s not number 1 is because some other shows have more ideas or more fleshed out characters. So this arthouse spastic comedy is about a boy who is disappointed with all of the adults in his life, then some chick hits him in the face with a guitar and giant robots from a secret facility start coming out of his head. It’s fucking wild and has like 30 different aesthetics and I love all of them. It’s the best looking show I’ve ever seen and one of the best directed. It feels like someone read a really weird poem and turned it into a 6 episode show. It’s funny, it’s emotional, it’s cartoony, it’s beautiful, it’s raunchy, it’s poetic, it’s silly, it’s creative, and it’s got strong themes. The wtf visuals, the nonsensical plot, and the amazing soundtrack make an aesthetic experience more than anything. (6 eps)

4. Princess Tutu

I already made a post about this show and why it’s good, which you can check out here, but the gist is it’s a meta fairytale about a duck that turns into a girl to help a storybook prince find his emotions. I used to love stories that were “twists on fairytales” or whatever, but after watching this show I realized that the genre is pretty derivative. This show is so amazing it honestly made me reevaluate an entire genre and come to the conclusion that this is the only member of that genre worth watching. It’s truly creative and well crafted with fantastic characters. (26 eps)

3. Hunter x Hunter (2011)

This show is basically a bunch of creative ideas, unique set pieces, and interesting characters stacked on top of each other in a trench coat disguised as a narrative. It’s about a perky shonen protagonist and a child assassin becoming friends while also trying to become hunters (a position involving vast wealth and adventure). It’s in a modern fantasy setting so literally anything can happen. In one arc they have to play life-or-death dodgeball against robots, and another is an insanely epic tale about the intense evil that people are capable of (feat. a 25 episode climax). I can’t even talk about all of the themes or ideas because there are just too many. Because of it’s wild, sprawling story, it has a lot of ass pulls and retcons, but in the grand scheme of things they don’t really matter. It’s long, but super easy to watch in huge chunks. (148 eps)

2. Neon Genesis Evangelion and The End of Evangelion

The most efficient way to describe this show is to say that it’s the most interesting show ever made. It’s about an apocalyptic future in which emotionally disturbed teenagers must pilot giant bio-machines to fight monsters which are referred to as angels. It’s got deep characters, a creative story, and is probably the most well directed show I’ve ever seen. The ending infamously fell apart due to production problems, so there’s a movie called The End of Evangelion to conclude the story. It’s a very disturbing arthouse movie, so watch out for that, but the show as a whole is moooosssstly more straightforward and fascinating, This is an absolute must watch. (26 eps and 1 movie)

1. Baccano!

Baccano! takes place in 1930s New York, and is about thieves, gangsters, criminals, terrorists, alchemists, and immortals interacting in this nonlinear comedy/action thrill ride. I felt like I was on a rollercoaster while watching this show. It’s the perfect blend of action, comedy, romance, drama, horror, and creative storytelling. It’s fantastic to rewatch since the first episodes barely make any sense without context (but are still an absolute joy to watch). It’s got great characters and it’s a great story. Go watch it. And then watch it again. (13 eps and 3 OVAs)

That’s it for this list! Check out my MAL page for more recommendations if you’re interested and have a great night! 

[fandomscollective]

Works in Progress

This is very long so it’s all under a cut, there are several original fiction stories and a couple fanfiction. I’m trying to decide what to write next so I finally made decent descriptions instead of trying to verbally explain them to people. I might be able to write but I can’t talk in a coherent, linear, concise way to save my life.

Opinions on what to work on next are greatly appreciated. 

Original Fiction

     AER 9833(AER): A sort of Dystopian Future. A.E.R. were created as tools. Toys for the rich and powerful. AER are beautiful, elegant, and capable of tapping in to the background radiation of the universe to preform amazing feats. After an AER goes rouge they are determined to be sentient and therefore responsible for their own actions. Suddenly no one feels safe having these Artificially Intelligent beings around and so they are placed in The City, where a special device suppresses their power. Some time later the world is beset by an unknown force that destroys most life leaving the remnants to flounder. Humans begin to seek shelter in The City, which survived the Apocalypse. Things get complected with AER and humans living side by side. One AER breaks the field that suppresses their power and starts a chain of events that lead to a startling truth: we are not alone. This story has a mad max/cloud atlas thing going on. A hyper futuristic society falls to an outside attack that destroys most of the world, leaving wastelands interspersed with pockets where nature has reclaimed the last vestiges of civilization. A few scattered cities survive and humans struggle for security. In this bleak landscape a single AER possesses the power to save the world from a horrific fate, but the cost might be more than they can pay.

     Beyond the Stars(BTS): Sci-fi/Fantasy epic. In a distant future humans and Martic share a world cut off from both civilizations. What began as a short lived and devastating war between the two has settled into a strange and unbalanced power dynamic. The Martic king rules with a pleasant public facade that hides a dark and devious plot. Soon he will have the power to contact his home world and take the humans as slaves into their great empire. But not everyone is fooled, the Maquiya, a group of guerrilla resistance fighters, know the truth. The story follows the members of this resistance movement and other key players as the fight to save this small pocket of humanity from a terrible fate draws to a startling close. Prophetic dreams, confusing nightmares, double agents, and a century old secret come to light. And there is more than the fate of this world in the balance.

     Descendant Effect(DE): Magical Realism. Davin Khaye and his husband Eric Douglas just adopted a baby girl with a mysterious past. They thought they were leaving that whole occult investigation thing behind when they settled on Staten Island but when and old flame develops a magical illness Davin and Eric find themselves, and their new friends, pulled into a fight for the fate of the world.           Descendant Effect Book One: Sins of the Father, Complete (Looking for Beta and Sensitivity Readers and Editors) Davin, a magical historical fiction writer and former occult investigator,  gets a call from his first boyfriend’s sister saying that Gary is deathly ill. When Davin visits out of sympathy for Sarah he discovers that not all is what it seems. A virulent Wrong Magic has infected Gary and it’s contagious. Davin gathers his Chemist husband, the newly minted Descendant, Kaila, and the not JUST a vampire Jeb, along with Davin’s own personal guardian demon to unravel the mystery. Things get ever more complicated with mysterious Hunter Rex, Angels, demons, and Rex’s erstwhile sorcerer adviser Ambrose getting involved. By the end there are more questions than answers and long road to travel before Davin can finally let go of his terrible past.

     Dirty Deeds(DD): Magical Realism. Lady Luck gifted Clay with Power, now he’s fallen out of favor. Can a Demon with a moral compass guide him back into the limelight or will Clay be forced to watch as tragedy dogs his every step. When a goddess tells you to use your probability power for the good of mankind, taking a trip to Vegas is probably the last thing you should do. Clay learns that the hard way when he ignores his duties and a favorite of the Lady dies in a tragic accident. Lady Luck is no mans fool and she curses Clay to a terrible fate. With his powers severely effected he must still try to help, try being the operative word. After Clay is connected to a series of terrible deaths the FBI steps in. The lead detective is more than she seems and when she figures out clay’s secret she has to make a choice, her career or the man she’s starting to fall in love with. Considering her kind aren’t supposed to be able to fall in love it’s not that hard a choice. But Clay doesn’t seem to feel the same, until he does, and the curse is completed, leaving Clay in a sorry state. Kaezon won’t give up easily though and fights to make sure Clay comes back, but Clay isn’t so sure that’s a good idea. (some inspiration for this came from American Gods by Neil Gaiman)

     Nowhere Places(NP): Sci-fi/ Fantasy, Magical Realism. The history of Earth is secretly intertwined with an alien war thousands of years in the making, and so is it’s fate. To save his people the King of the Fay brought them to earth 15,000 years ago, but something went wrong. From a base on the moon the king directs a war in The Nowhere Places, overlaps in this dimension and another barren dimension. The Fay and the Phaedron have been at war for fifteen centuries and the people have had enough. Two of the Fay princes hatch separate rebellions while a Phaedron warrior, having crashed his vessel near a human school, discovers that humans aren’t the stupid cattle he’d always been told they were. Things take a dramatic turn when an archaeologist finds a massive structure several hundred feet below the exactly center of the Sahara desert and learns that this war, which threatens to take the earth out any time now, was never meant to happen because the Fay king… has been in suspended animation in the Cityship for 15 thousand years. This is one of the least fleshed out stories I currently have. Several scenes popped in my head that inspired the story and they almost all look like anime/mange scenes, the one where the archaeologist discovers the king reminds me of the scene where Integra discovers Alucard in Van Hellsing for instance.

     Prince of Darkness(PoD): Superhero, Magical Realism. Jamie was five when she first met the mysterious white haired boy. He didn’t have a name but Jamie could tell he was smart and creative so she called him Donny after her favorite ninja turtle. When she’s 32  her best friend Donny and his ‘boys’ Raziel and Gadreel are back after a ten year absence. Things are going great for the up and coming journalist and then she hits the big time, the very first real life superhero! Henry, her detective little brother, isn’t so thrilled and Donny and the boys seem strangely reluctant to talk about The Prince of Darkness. Soon things start getting even stranger when three people with white hair begin to try to capture The Prince. Tensions run high and weird people keep popping up at Donny’s lounge club. As Jamie searches for answers Donny searches for a connection. Lost and isolated from his ‘true’ family he begins to forge a new one through his Club, The Nine Circles. But the sort of people that hang out in Hell bring their own kinds of trouble. As Donny’s checkered past starts to come to light, the mysterious man finds that his heart wants more than it can have. Starting a relationship with his sister’s best friend was never Henry’s plan, especially since he knows they both love each other, but when Jamie rejects Donny’s advances what’s a guy supposed to do? Comforting his friend leads to something more but the more that Henry gets to know Donny the more concerned his is that he’s sleeping with the ‘enemy.’             PoD: Raising Cain: The story of Cain. Yes, that Cain. After an accident leads to a terrible curse Cain walks the earth searching for meaning. When he learns of ‘Lucifer’s’ fall and those that walk the earth destroying in his name, Cain finds his purpose, because he knows something is wrong. Hêlêl was the kindest of all angels and he would never have turned on the others. But the road to Hell is paved with good intentions and Cain finds that much of the time his attempts to help only cause more problems. After thousands of years traveling the world Cain encounters a spirited young man who calls him Red and falls in love, then one day, he vanishes. It’s the beginning of the end for Cain’s optimism and he spirals into a place so dark he thinks even his long lost friend would forsake him, but he can’t manage to care. Then Cyd and Nancy come along and drag the grouchy old man out of the depths of his despair. And just in time to find that maybe some friends aren’t as lost as previously thought.          PoD: Cyd's Story. Cyd grew up in the sixties. His little hometown was the picture of middle America. On the outside at least. In truth the town is made up of Hunter’s and their families. People who have dedicated their lives to taking out every last Tecum on earth. Unfortunately for Cyd, his mother had tried to get out of the lifestyle and ended up returning home a single mother. Most of the town whispered that she had fallen in with a ‘bad crowd’ and believed Cyd was a Tecum half breed. Only respect for his mother’s family kept them from doing anything, until it didn’t anymore. After ‘The Incident’ Cyd withdrew ever further from those around him and when his mother died when he was 17 he fled the town and never looked back, until Red and Nancy insist on following a Tecum on the run from Red’s brand of justice straight back to the town.                                       PoD: Saints and Sinners: The story of Casper and friends. Casper has never been one to run from his problems so when his team goes missing on a mission he doesn’t hesitate to comply with their captor’s demand. Of course it helps that he knows the guy. Really really well. After liberating his friends from his long time antagonist Ray, Cas find that, this time, he can’t seem to get rid of the man. That’s OK though, because he’s ready to mend the rift between them. Shadow isn’t happy about sharing his closest friend but when a supernatural threat looms they are happy to have an angel on their side. (this is like leverage if it was set in a world were the supernatural exists)                                                       PoD: Charlemagne Song: The story of Charlemagne. When she was in high school, Elle went by Elliot, and had a best friend named Jessica. Back then Elle was head over heels for the tiny blond girl but that was years ago. After a chance encounter with the famous musician Charlemagne Song leaves Elle single and depressed she discoverers that Jess might still be her best friend even though they haven’t talked in years. Suddenly Elle finds herself in a world of pure imagination as she navigates life with one of the most famous musicians of the day, who just happens to be half angel.                                                               PoD: R.E.D.: Story about a band, few details but some characters and lots of song titles and album titles, two of the band members are part of Donny’s ‘family’

     Sad Story(SS): Lucifer’s punishment wasn’t just banishment and when Michael finds out, all Hell breaks loose. Michael wants to let his brother live out his last days on earth instead of locked in a dark cage so he kidnaps him and with lawyer-angel Raziel and his twin brother Gadreel, find a place to hide the erstwhile devil. But Michael’s absence from heaven does not go unnoticed and while the other angels search for him strange murders have been happening in the city. The few witnesses give a description that strangely matches Michael. Can he prove he didn’t do it, or will he be parted from Lucifer before the Brightest of god’s angels fades away completely. (some cross over potential, very sad but with a happy ending cause I like that)

     Sonnets(Son): Inspired by ‘The Good Place.’ Lucifer misses heaven so he tries to recreate it, but to recreate perfection you have to recreate imperfection. (minimal work, the newest of things that have popped into my head)

     Twilight on the Moon(TotM): A Space Epic. Originally conceived of as a graphic novel, this story follows the exploits of the first human intergalactic journey. Humans reach a point in their development where they attract attention from the Galactic Coalition, a group comprised of advanced races from throughout the universe. These races band together to form a peace keeping force and have strict rules and regulations that they expect all members to adhere to, and if a race refuses to follow the guidelines then they are banned from involvement in the larger community of space faring civilizations. Of course, humans, being humans, don’t much care for the Coalition’s ultimatum. A stealth ship arrives on earth and informs the governing bodies that the Coalition isn’t the only group out there and that humanity can find out how other races live by constructing a ship, from plans provided by the individual in the stealth ship, that can travel to all non member systems and pick up ambassadors to have a conference on what humanity should do. The ship they construct is christened La Luna as it was made on a moon base. The captain of the ship is a short delicate looking man by the name of Rane Laforge. He hand picks a complement of characters for the mission that include his ex-girlfriend, Dr. Sandra Fisk as his CMO, Lt. Cmdr. Lars Tavic, Security Chief Anton Talon, Specialist Translator Rendell Hartford, and many others. They pick up several ambassadors including the accidentally acquired Ares LacTon of the La Mer Ray, who falls in love with Lars. It quickly becomes clear that the mission is going to be stranger than expected when we discover that very few of the people on board are actually human! (a sort of comedy of errors in space with the occasional serious moment, the world this is set in is my most elaborate and most complete but the story itself has no coherence yet. There is significant possibility that it will cross over with BTS as two-three of the characters from that likely served aboard La Luna at some point.)

     Unnamed Prince and Regent Story(PR): Fantasy. A princess gets kidnapped but it’s not what you think! She escapes her captors and flees on foot. She stumbles across a caravan and is taken under the wing of their guard who helps her disguise herself as a man. On the trip back to her home she realizes that she’s never been happier and that she is actually a he and he has fallen in love with the guard who seems to feel the same. After getting back to his home however, his love mysteriously vanishes. The now Prince throws the kingdom into chaos and becomes despondent. Spiraling into a drunken haze until a visiting royal entourage brings an unexpected guest and a wild revelation.(another where I have a fairly thought out world but only a sketch of the plot)

FanFiction

     Sherlock Fan Fiction(Sher): A Ghost From the Past. Someone from Sherlock's past shows up and John finds out how little he truly knows of his best friend. Basically Sherlock’s best friend from childhood shows up and it turns out that she was more than a friend and part of the reason Mycroft and Sherlock don’t get along is that Mycroft had asked her to marry him and she had said yes and Sherlock believed(for actual reasons) that Mycroft purposely stole her from him. That’s only the first big revaluation about Sherlock.

     Strange Sounds Supernatural Fan Fiction(SSFF): A Ghost From the Future. The boys are transported to the future where the supernatural is no longer hidden and some major event created a post apocalyptic fallout, but this time it was humans who did it. The result is that massive creatures are roaming the planet destroying any pockets of civilization they can find. Thanks to a few not so dead and reformed archangels there is a part of the US that’s a ‘safe’ zone. When Past Sam and Dean show up around the time that safe zone begins to come under attack both versions of the boys and the future archangels join forces with Occultist John Constantine, Alien Technology Specialist Mickey Smith and his wife Dr. Martha Smith, and the secret organization known as Torchwood as they travel the world looking for clues to put this new threat to rest at last. Features several original characters and many crossover characters from similar worlds with cameo appearances by characters like Crowley and Aziraphale from Good Omens. (Only about Half plotted but the most written of any FanFiction I have so far.)

     Supernatural/Batman Beyond Fusion(SPN/BB): This plot bunny may not make it, basically just replacing the cast of Batman Beyond with the cast of Supernatural but tweaking the plot for supernatural stuff.

     Ultimate CrossOver Fic(C/O): This fic started out in my head with a few comic panels showing Jack Harness falling comet style out of the sky over the impala. The boys investigate and find a very naked Jack in the crater. He of course starts flirting. At the same time that that is happening, the TARDIS bumps into the hull of the USS Enterprise, manifests on a landing deck, and then they both get sucked into some kind of time distortion. Meanwhile, Gabriel, trapped in a spell that Metatron set up to siphon his power to keep the wards on heaven set, uses the last of his strength to send a dream message to Sam. This story would include Supernatural, Doctor Who, Torchwood, Sherlock, Harry Potter, Good Omens, Marvel, Pushing Daises, and basically anything else I can find a way to add and every conceivable mlm ship. (I can’t write sex that involves women because of dysphoria but feel free to believe those ships happen too)

[miss-noo-na]

Crescent (I.M. Werewolf AU)

Title: Crescent

Featuring: I.M (Monsta X ) x Reader

POV: 2nd

Word count: 5k.

Warnings: Violence, mentions of blood, very subtle smut.

Summary: You’ve hunted werewolves all your life, so when you come across a lone wolf in the woods, you never expected him to become the other half of your moon.

Requested by Anon! Now taking Halloween/Fall themed scenario requests!

Leaves crunched under your feet as you moved slowly through the barren forest; the dead, spiny branches raking across a clear night sky. The air was crisply cold, stinging your cheeks and making your eyes water, but you pressed on, hand against your holster.

It was foolish to hunt alone, you knew that, but you’d gotten a tip about a lone wolf out in the trees. It should be simple to take just one down, especially with your years of experience and acquired hunting skills. You’d been hunting werewolves all your life, so this wasn’t anything you couldn’t handle.

Although, you hadn’t killed many lately. Something had happened, something that complicated your entire life as you knew it. You fell in love.

But not just with anyone, you came to love the very thing you had been brought up to despise and wipe out.

You hadn’t meant to, it was supposed to be like any other hunting trip. You’d recently gotten out from under your parents hovering and joined another group of hunters your own age. They were resistant to let you go at first, but eased up once they saw you were carrying on the tradition as you should.  Things were freer with this group, you didn’t have anyone breathing down your neck or telling you the “proper” way to do things. You were allowed to create your own identity as a hunter, and you loved it. Your group loved it, too. They called you ruthless, cunning, and precise, and smiled while they said it.

Your mates had taken out a good portion of the pack when you came in for damage control, sniffing through their hideaway house out in the woods to smoke out any stragglers. That’s when you met Changkyun.

He bounded out of the shadows and caught you off-guard, which was not easy to do. You were tackled to the ground, gun sliding away from you in the process. He pinned you, snarling in your face, eyes shining a gleaming gold as his fangs extended. He was part-way through transformation, very much human still but subtle animal-like changes taking place on his face in front of your very eyes.

You struggled against him, but with his supernatural abilities taking hold, he was just too strong.

For the first time, probably ever, you felt fear, and wondered if this would be your last moment on earth. Instead of ending your life immediately like you thought he would, he began to speak instead.

“Was it you?” He growled, and you were taken aback, your body going limp under him.

“What?” You breathed.

“Did you kill them?”

He was referring to his pack, surely.

“No, but I know the people who did.” You swallowed, seeing no reason not to be honest with him.

And to your complete shock, he let you go.

“You’re not going to kill me?” You asked as you sat up, watching him walk away from you.

“Not today.” He said without turning around, and you watched until he disappeared down the hall.

From that moment on, there had been a strange tension in those woods. You would occasionally come across each other, but both bound by your own code of ethics, had not attempted to attack each other. Changkyun refused to kill anyone who had not had their personal hand in the slaying of his brethren, and you could not bring yourself to raise your gun at someone who had so honorably let you go free when he could have ripped you to shreds. Besides, you had kept a close eye on him, monitoring his every move, and had found that unlike his pack mates, he had yet to kill a human, at least for you to see.  He fed mostly on animal hearts.

There was also something so starkly different about him, in comparison to every other were-creature you interacted with. Werewolves were usually brash, bold, and proud of their lineage. They caused trouble in both human and animal form, and loved every minute of it. Changkyun, on the other hand, was quiet, dutiful, and did not go into the city to wreck havoc like his pack members had, even when they were alive. There was an absence of Alpha posturing, and instead in human form he appeared soft and handsome.

You felt disgusted with yourself for letting those things drift over your mind when you thought of him.

Even stranger still than your awkward run-ins the first few months, were when you started to speak to one another; a few words here and there at first, him wondering where your “pack” was and you saying that although you lived and worked with them often, you preferred scouting on your own. He found this incredibly unusual, so you questioned him back, wondering why he had not found a new pack and hung around that old musty house, and why he had not come to kill you yet.

Things got deeper the more often and longer you talked, until you had started to get to know each other by coincidence. You found out that he stopped killing humans years ago, because he used to be one and the guilt was overwhelming. He knew that you had killed werewolves all your life, and pitied your existence as a “slave” to your parents’ beliefs, which you vehemently denied and defended yourself against. When you got upset at his accusations he’d chuckle at you, the corners of his mouth pulling up into a slight smirk and you had to look away from him.

“You could do a lot of other things, you know.” He’d said to you once, sitting on a log in the forest. He was covered in a black wool sweater, hair pushed to one side, and you could not even for a second believe he was capable of turning into such a vicious creature.

“So could you.” You countered as you sat down next to him.

He laughed a little and shook his head. “There’s no cure for me.”

“I know that.” Your voice softened. “But you could go out looking for others like you, start your own pack. I’m sure they exist.”

When you looked back his head had dropped, and he fidgeted with his hands.

“Let me ask you something.” He started, voice more serious than usual, and you nodded.

“If someone brutally murdered your parents, would you go out and look for new ones?”

Your chest ached at his words, and you understood. The wound was still too raw, he was healing. You hadn’t ever considered a werewolf having feelings before, even though you knew they were partially human. You hadn’t been trained to feel empathy for the thing you were meant to be hunting. Even now sitting here with him, if your parents or your mates knew, you’d be burned at the stake.

“In time, things will get better. For both of us.” You offered, and without thinking you reached out and patted his knee, like you would a friend. He peered up at you, a slither of gold light flashing through his brown eyes as he did so.

You don’t know how you got to the next part, it was all a blur. You don’t remember now if more words had been exchanged or if it was just a look, but suddenly his lips were on yours and you were consumed in his embrace. He was warm and supple and he felt like home; the kind of home you’d only ever dreamed of.

Once you got your wits about you, you felt yourself pushing him away, retracting from the scene of the incident, stumbling out of the woods and away from him in a rush, and he watched you go.

You left after that, to the next town over, renting your own little cabin to work by yourself. You were not able to face him again or even yourself. You had betrayed your entire way of life and those you cared about, and you knew it would be dangerous if you continued to see him. You knew you would only fall deeper in love with him.

There was shuffling in those unfamiliar trees, pulling you out of your reverie. You ducked behind one and held your breath a moment, because you knew something was coming. Something big.

You peaked around the tree to steal a glance and you saw it, the wolf. Though it trotted on 4 legs like any other wolf, you could tell it was of the “Were” variety. It was larger than normal, muscular, and its black midnight hair shimmered under the moonlight, eyes glowing red as he scanned the woods. As it came closer, you quickly rolled around the tree to face it, gun un-holstered and pointing toward it.

The wolf stopped dead in its tracks, and you waited for something, a lunge or a snarl. Instead, it whined and shook its head.

Your brow furrowed, knuckles whitening as you strained your grip on the gun. The wolf wasn’t giving you a fight, and you didn’t know how to react. You should have just shot it while you had the chance, but something was holding you back.

The wolf approached, and your body froze. It didn’t come at you threatening in any way, and before you could realize what was happening, the wolf was nuzzling up against your legs, its back almost high enough to reach your torso.

“Changkyun?” You breathed his name in a puff of cold, white air. He couldn’t respond, but the way it peered up at you, you knew it to be true.

You sighed and dropped your weapon, placing it back in its holster. You’d never seen him in his full form before. You avoided him during these times.

“What are you doing out here?” You spoke, again though he couldn’t answer. You took a seat on a rock and the two of you were face to face.

Compelled by it, though his form was so intimidating, you reached out and rubbed your fingers through the thick, dark fur around his neck. His eyes fell shut and he panted.

This wasn’t his area of the woods; you’d intentionally left about an hour outside of your former town to avoid him.

He let out another whine as he trotted into a circle to lie at your feet. You knew it would take some time for him to change back, and he seemed intent on staying put here until he did just that, and making sure you stayed too.

You thought about it for a moment, and then sank down off of the rock and to his side. You pet him a moment longer before resting your weary head onto his fur and drifting to sleep.

You awoke early the next morning, just after sunrise, and Changkyun nowhere to be found. You panicked for a moment, eyes darting around the now illuminated, autumn forest.

“I’m over here” He called, just a part of him peaking from behind a tree.

“Why are you hiding?” You called, rubbing your eyes.

“Because I’m naked.” He called back, and you swallowed hard, then let out a laugh. You had forgotten about that part.

“There’s a cabin about 2 miles northeast of here. I’ll meet you there.” He called, shaking his head in that direction. You considered his proposal, then pulled yourself to your feet and began walking.

You came to the small house later that morning, smoke rising from a stone chimney. It looked like a house out of a fairytale, and you let yourself inside. It wasn’t quite like his old home, the one he shared with his pack. In fact, for its size, it was actually a lot more comfortable. It had a wooden table set, an old couch with a crocheted blanket on the back of it, a fireplace with fading embers inside, a fully-stocked kitchen, and old art on the walls. His pack didn’t need nor care for a cozy place to call home, but that seemed like an important attribute for Changkyun.

You heard him sometime after you, shuffling around the house to a back door. He appeared a few minutes later fully dressed.

“Would you like some coffee?” He asked as he moved toward the antique gas stove and you cocked an eyebrow at him.

“Werewolves drink coffee?” You asked, and he chuckled at you.

“Werewolves do a lot of things. We are still human, you know. At least somewhat.”

Everything you’d ever been told about werewolves from your parents had mostly been a lie, you came to find out through interacting with Changkyun. You’d been told stories about how, even in their human form, they were bloodthirsty monsters who fed off the innocent, tearing apart their bodies while still alive. It wasn’t quite like that, though. Werewolves needed hearts to stay alive, at least one a month, and it didn’t have to be human. Their reputation came from the packs that rebelled against humans, breaking ties with them after being thought of as evil beasts, and getting their revenge in the form of blood and entrails. You didn’t know how an old soul like Changkyun ended up with a pack who thought like this, but you didn���t feel comfortable enough to question it. Though he was still in mourning, you were glad you see him here like this, in a home of his own, living his life. Yet, it had to be terribly lonely.

He brewed the coffee and laid out cream and sugar on the table. You sat in silence while the beans were ground and it dripped into the pot, and a moment later he joined you at the table, setting a steaming mug down in front of you.

“I’m guessing you were hunting.” He commented without making eye contact, focusing on his coffee. This was always an awkward topic for the two of you.

“You, too.” You said as you dropped a sugar cube into the black liquid and began to stir.

“I didn’t expect to find you out here.” He said, and you laughed.

“I could say the same for you; I had no idea you’d left. How on earth did you end up in the same place as me?”

“Fate, I suppose.”

His words made you prematurely swallow a large gulp of the hot drink and it seared your throat, you coughed a little bit.

“I’m sorry if I came on so strong last time.” He nodded his head once, encircling his mug with his hands, and you knew it had to be burning his palms.

“It’s not something I planned on doing, it just sort of happened.”

You’d always gotten that impression. In fact, everything about the two of you had “just happened”, like your logical brain went out the window every time you were around him and you were driven off of pure emotion, which was so unlike you.

You didn’t reply, because you didn’t know what to say. You just stared into your coffee for a long, quiet moment.

“Lonely out here.” You said absent-mindedly, and he looked up.

“Lonely back home, too”

You shrugged. “It’s a nice place; you could easily share it with someone.”

“I already tried that.”

You blinked up at him, wondering if he meant you. There was no way he ever thought of you like that, it’d be foolish. However, you found yourself making intent eye-contact with him, and his gaze spoke volumes.

“What are we doing?” You said with an uneasy laugh as you ripped your eyes away from his. “Everything about this is wrong.”

“I know you hate me.” Changkyun started, idly stirring his coffee. “I know you hate what I am, and everything in your body tells you to destroy me, and yet I keep trying to get closer to you.  How sick is that?” He laughed without even a trace of humor.

Your face turned somber, and you reached out across the table to clasp your hand around his wrist, pulling it away from the hot cup and sliding your palms together.

“I don’t hate you.”

He stared down at your entwined hands and sighed.

“But you’re supposed to.”

He was right about that. Hunting was the only thing you ever knew, and though you found yourself longing to have him, another part of you fought against it.

“Were you for real about what you said earlier? About sharing your home with someone?”

His hand squeezed yours, on instinct, and he nodded. “Of course.”

Since he had been brave enough once already, you figured it was your turn, standing and walking around the table to his side, leaning down to kiss him. He tipped his head up and his hands were already cupping your face and splaying into your hair, pulling you down more against his mouth.

You forgot all about your duty as a hunter, what you’d been raised to think, and how wrong this was. It didn’t feel wrong and instead, felt like the only good thing you’d ever done. You felt warmth deep inside your chest, your limbs like jello, light-headed as you found him standing and guiding you into another room. In his bed he touched you, caressed you, and seared every sensitive part of your feverish flesh with his lips and tongue.  Before long you were both naked and filled, panting as dew formed on the surface of your skin.  Your passion quickened until you fell headfirst into blissful release, and as he came down after you, you held his face and kissed his forehead. You fell asleep in a tangle of limbs.

The next morning you awoke to him brushing your hair away from your cheek and sliding the pad of his thumb over it. You blinked, the sun stinging your eyes and his soft face coming into focus.

“Hey.” He said gently, and you couldn’t help but smile as the memories of the night before rushed through you.

“Hi.”

You both laughed awkwardly before fading into contented silence.  You pushed your hand through his hair, stroking his scalp and planting a firm kiss on his lips. You signed as you pulled away.

“I have to go.”

His face visibly fell at your words.

“Will you come back?”

“Yeah.”

You didn’t know what any of this truly meant, what you were going to do about your life now, you just knew you wanted to come back.

Today you were going back to your hunting mate’s house for a visit, to catch up and have a proper hunter’s dinner. You didn’t know how you were going to handle acting normal around them after you’d just fraternized with the enemy like this.

You dressed slowly, wanting to savor the moment, and Changkyun followed. He walked you to the front door and kissed the top of your head, nuzzling your nose in a very wolf-like gesture as he urged you to be careful going back. You smirked, wondering if he’d forgotten what you were capable of.  Still, it felt nice to be protected for once.

You walked back to where you’d run into Changkyun the night before and found your car, driving home to get refreshed and then making the long drive back to your old town and to the house on the hill where your hunter pals lived. You ran your fingers through your hair to un-muss it, and then went inside.

You expected to see their smiling faces, but instead when you stepped into the living room you saw them; your parents sitting on one of the couches, and a few other hunters opposite them. They all gave you a stern look when you entered.

“Hey, what are you guys doing here?” You said with a forced smile, wondering why on earth they’d be at your old home. They’d visited before, wanting to scope out your hunter friends before letting you leave, but there’s no reason they’d just swing by like this.

“Sit down, we need to talk.”

Your mother’s voice sounded like she was trying to keep her tone even, and you slipped further into the room and sat down in a chair, feeling everyone’s eyes on you.

“You want to explain where you were last night?” Your father asked, his eyes piercing you. Your mouth dropped open and you stumbled over your words for a moment.

“I was out hunting last night, and then I went home.”

It was, of course, a bold-faced lie, and by the looks on their faces, they weren’t buying it. They sat in silence, throwing glances at one another, and you felt your body tense up.

“Robert was out in the same area as you last night, tracking a lone wolf. He said he saw you sleeping in the woods.” He explained, gesturing to one of your hunting mates.

They didn’t need to tell you what else they saw, your head cradled into Changkyun’s fur, perfectly content with the creature of your family’s nightmares.

Your thoughts were racing, coming up with a million different excuses and fibs you could tell, but you didn’t find any of them suitable. Instead, you felt compelled to tell the truth, that this could be your way out.

“His name is Changkyun.” You started, and your parents reactions were visceral, your father standing and turning away from you pacing in front of the fire place. Your mother dropped her head into her hands.

“And why do you know his name?” Your father asked, coming to one spot with his hands on his hips, but still facing away from you.

“Because we’re friends. In fact, we’re more than friends, now.”

You barely had time to look up, you just heard his footsteps pounding toward you and your father was taking you by the throat and forcing you to look into his eyes of rage. Your mother gasped and stood up, but she didn’t move to help you. Everyone else just watched, stoic.

“There is no way in hell my daughter is out frolicking around with a monster.” He snarled. Your eyes widened as you fought to breathe, his hand tightening on your windpipe.

“Pl-please…” You brought your hands up to claw at his arm, and finally your mother had had enough. She moved across the room and tugged hard on his arm, and he let you go.

You bent forward and rested on your knees, coughing and gagging. The rush of oxygen back to your brain made you queasy, and let yourself collapse on the floor.

“Where is he?” Your father yelled, and you shook your head, refusing to ever tell him. You knew he would kill Changkyun on sight.

“Fine, I’ll find him myself.”

Your father stomped out of the room, and you knew you had to get up; you had to get to Changkyun before he did. You pushed yourself haphazardly to your feet, but your mother caught you by your arms.

“Don’t.” She said in warning, her face pulled tight. You knew that she agreed with him, that she would never accept your feelings, but her eyes conveyed a different message, that she still feared for and loved you deeply, and wanted you to let this go for your own sake. She did not put it past your father to kill his own daughter, if she happened to get in the way.

“I have to.” You said, pulling yourself out of her grip. She called after you as you ran out of the room, but you ignored it the best you could.

In your car, speeding down a dirt road, you knew your father had a head start; Robert had probably already given him the exact coordinates of where he saw you. Lucky for you, he didn’t know where Changkyun’s cabin was, but it wouldn’t take him long to find it. He was an experienced hunter, after all.

You pulled up on the side of a road and got out, running into the woods without fear. It was getting dark and cold, but you managed to somehow dodge every rock and tree as you scrambled toward the cabin. When you finally saw it, an inviting light on in the front window and smoke coming out of the chimney, you felt relief, yet knew you couldn’t celebrate just yet.

You pounded on the door with your fists, and Changkyun opened it in a hurry. You pushed him inside and slammed the door behind you, locking every bolt and handle on it.

“What’s going on? Are you okay?” He asked urgently, and you turned to face him.

“My father, he’s coming here. He knows.”

Changkyun’s face changed drastically, and he swallowed hard. “How? When?”

“One of my hunting mates saw us in the woods last night and told everyone. He’s going to kill you if he finds you.”

Changkyun pushed his hand through his hair and looked at the ground.

You started moving frantically throughout the house, turning off every light and any sign of life. You went to the backdoor and made sure it was locked tight, then grabbed Changkyun’s arm to pull him into the bedroom, but he resisted.

“We can’t hide; he’s not just going to leave.”

Although he was right, you found his unwillingness to try dumfounding.

“What do you suggest? Are you actually going to fight him?”

“Are you actually choosing me over your father?”

You dropped your arms and thought for a moment, but only a moment.

“Yes.”

Changkyun let out a shaky breath, and his face said that he didn’t believe you, though he wanted to.

“All I ever got from my parents was blood and violence. I was a just a pawn in their army, a tool to further their hatred.”

You reached out for his hand and threaded your fingers together. “With you, I can be something different.”

He looked down to where your hands joined and squeezed, purposeful this time.

“Then I can’t hide from him forever.”

Even if Changkyun didn’t want to be the violent beast he was made out to be, there were certain codes even he had to follow, and that included not backing down from a fight, especially one from someone who wished to completely annihilate you.

“Once I change, there won’t be much control over what happens if he attacks me, you understand that, right?”

He looked straight into your eyes, pulling your hand to his chest. He could not live with himself if it meant hurting you in any way, even if that meant hurting someone you may love in self-defense.

You locked eyes and nodded firmly. “I understand.”

As you looked at each other for a minute longer, you heard a truck revving in the distance, making its way closer to the cabin.

Changkyun used his other hand to pull your body forward and crash his lips down on yours, consuming you in one more passionate kiss before pulling away completely.  You watched him walk toward the door, and he shot you one last look before leaving.

You felt cemented to the floor the entire time, and it wasn’t until the door slammed shut behind him that you got your mobility back, racing to the window just in time to see him running off into the trees.

You felt completely helpless, but you knew he wanted you to stay. Besides, you don’t know how helpful you’d be in this battle. Back when you thought you were hunting monsters it was fine, killing dnd seeing death didn’t affect you. Now, however, with your father coming after the man you’d grown so fond of, you wouldn’t be able to handle it no matter what the outcome may be.

You sat alone in the cabin for ages, still in the dark. You paced around the room, and when that was too much you went outside and paced on the front porch. You stopped sometimes and stared out into the dark woods, thinking every creak or snap in the trees was one of them.

Finally, after what felt like hours and very well could have been, something dark was moving between the trees. Your eyes followed the figure, not knowing if it were man or beast. Then, you saw a pair of red eyes.

You let out a sigh of relief and came down off the porch, eagerly awaiting his arrival. However, he moved slowly, and as he got closer you saw he was limping and struggling, and you rushed out into the trees toward him.

When you reached him he saw you and let himself collapse, panting hard with his tongue out. You fell to your knees and cradled his head. You cooed and stroked his fur, checking his body. He was obviously wounded but it was hard to tell where in the dark. Your hands came into contact with something wet and warm and you knew it could only be one thing.

“We have to get inside.” You urged him, knowing he would have to help you do that, as he was much too large to carry.

Somehow, after a lot of struggle, you got him inside and laid him out on the rug. You searched the house for anything you could use to help him. Luckily, being a hunter meant you were also quite good with first aid, dressing your fair share of wounds out on missions.  You were relieved to see that none of his injuries appeared to be gunshots, as you knew if silver had even grazed his skin he would be in trouble. It did make you wonder, however, how he’d managed to take on your father without sustaining one. Your father was always ready with his gun.

As he crossed your mind, you felt her chest get heavy, wondering if he was dead and not sure entirely how you felt about it. You had resented him for years, his cruel and demanding nature, his over-protective hovering. The way he had handled you earlier in the night was not new to you, but he was still your father, and there was still some sense of loss to be had.

You couldn’t mourn him now, though, there were more pressing matters at hand.

You’d found some alcohol in a cabinet and torn an unused bed sheet into strips to dress the wounds. You brought him water in a bowl until he was no longer parched and you stroked his head as he finally calmed down. You had so many things you wanted to say to him, but knew now was not the time.

You curled up on the floor next to him, telling him to wake you if he needed anything or felt any pain. He understood and nuzzled your face.

You woke up only a few hours later, the sun just beginning to rise. Changkyun wasn’t with you, and you sat up in a daze, eager to find him. You jumped to your feet and ran into the bedroom, but he wasn’t there. Your heart started to pound against your chest.

“Changkyun?” you nearly screamed into the house, and almost jumped out of your skin when he exited from the bathroom. He was shirtless, but wearing a pair of sweats. His arms were freshly bandaged and he had a couple of drying wounds on his chest and face.

“I’m right here.” He said with worry all over his face, and you rushed to him.

“Are you okay? Are you still hurt? Did he shoot you?” You said in a quick rush of breath, checking him over with your hands, examining all his wounds.

He half-smiled and took your hands into his, making you look at him.

“I’m fine, for the most part. Don’t worry.”

He leaned in and pecked you on the lips.

“What about you? Are you alright?”

He meant more mentally than physically, but you weren’t entirely sure.

“Is he dead?” you asked, and his faced turned solemn as he nodded slowly, avoiding eye contact.

“I tried to talk to him, to explain everything, hoping he might understand or at least leave us be. I assured him that you were safe with me, but I don’t think he heard a word I said.” Changkyun tried to explain, and you simply listened.

“He fired off a round but I think he was so angry he couldn’t even think straight, much less aim. He missed.”

Your eyes widened. Your father never missed a shot.

“I didn’t want to change, but when things get heated like that, I can’t help it. My body reacts.”

He seemed desperate to explain himself, to assure you he never meant to truly hurt your father.

“I managed a good lunge to disarm him, and I tried to hold him down but he pulled out a knife.”

That explained the wounds. Your father always kept a knife strapped to his ankle.

“I tried to subdue him, I really did. I didn’t want to hurt him, but he gave me no choice. I’m so sorry.”

You pulled Changkyun into your arms, careful not to hurt him, stroking the back of his head as you held him.

“I understand. You did what you had to.”

You stood there like that for a long time holding him as he circled his arms around you, too. You were both lost in thought, yet so relieved to be back together again.

“Once my father doesn’t come back, they’ll send the others out.” You finally said, and Changkyun nodded.

“I wouldn’t blame you if you wanted to go back to them.” He said, and you pulled back, making him look at you.

“I’m not going anywhere unless it’s with you.”

He couldn’t help but smile at your words.

“We can’t stay here, then”

You hated to leave the cozy cabin, but you knew there were a thousand more out there somewhere. You moved hastily to gather only essentials, throwing them into the back of your truck and heading out of town. You had no idea where you were going, or where you would end up, just as long as it was somewhere far enough away that the two of you could stay together in peace.

[aion-rsa]

Star Wars The Bad Batch: What You Need to Watch Before Starting the Show

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The Bad Batch is the newest animated chapter in the Star Wars saga. Set immediately after Revenge of the Sith, the show explores the rise of the Empire from the perspective of a group of “genetically mutated” clones who never fit in with their own kind and fit in even less after Order 66. Unlike the rest of the Clone Army, the members of Clone Force 99 (the official designation of the group nicknamed “The Bad Batch”) are unaffected by the secret inhibitor chips implanted in their brains, which quickly puts a target on their back, especially after they refuse to execute Jedi on the battlefield.

Clone Force 99 find themselves in the middle of a sea change they don’t fully understand, as Palpatine declares himself Emperor and the Clone Army turns evil. To make matters worse, Admiral Tarkin (the future Grand Moff of A New Hope) sees the clone forces as obsolete and wants to replace them with a new Imperial army. On the run and without purpose, the Bad Batch will have to carve out a new future for themselves in a much more hostile galaxy.

In many ways, The Bad Batch is really a sequel to The Clone Wars, which spent much more time chronicling the lives of the soldiers than the Prequel Trilogy ever did. But that doesn’t mean you’ll have to watch all of The Clone Wars to understand what’s going on in The Bad Batch. In fact, all you need to know about Clone Force 99 is pretty much covered in the series premiere, “Aftermath.” That said, if you’re one of those fans who likes to be really thorough, here are a few other movies and TV episodes you should watch to get the full backstory of what’s going on in The Bad Batch:

Revenge of the Sith

To be completely honest, Revenge of the Sith is the only thing you’ll really need to have watched to understand what’s going on in the first episode of The Bad Batch. In fact, the first half of “Aftermath” takes place around the same time as the third act of the Prequel Trilogy closer, with the Bad Batch witnessing the atrocities of Order 66 with their own eyes.

Revenge of the Sith shows us Order 66 from the point of view of newly-anointed Sith apprentice Anakin Skywalker as well as the many Jedi who are about to get executed across the galaxy. We watch as Anakin, now known as Darth Vader, massacres his former brethren inside the Jedi Temple on Coruscant (even younglings), while masters like Aayla Secura, Ki-Adi-Mundi, and Plo Koon are slaughtered by their own clone forces.

The Bad Batch are confused as they watch the other clones turn on their Jedi general, and refuse to partake in the extermination. It’s the scene that truly sets up Clone Force 99 as the heroes of this story.

Later in the episode, fans also get to see another key moment from Revenge of the Sith from the clone perspective. This time, the Bad Batch gather with the rest of the Clone Army on Kamino to watch a hologram of Palpatine declare the formation of the first Galactic Empire. It’s almost a complete word-for-word recreation of the scene in the movie, complete with the voice of Ian McDiarmid.

If you want a better sense of the gravity of Order 66, and how Palpatine’s machinations led to the fall of the Republic and the Jedi, you’ll want to watch this movie.

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The Clone Wars Season 7 Episodes 1-4

While I’d even count “The Bad Batch” arc of The Clone Wars as optional, it is technically the first Star Wars adventure starring Clone Force 99. In this season 7 arc, Hunter, Wrecker, Tech, and Crosshair team up with Clone Commander Rex and Anakin to rescue Echo, a clone soldier who was once thought dead but has actually become an involuntary pawn in the Separatist war machine.

These episodes flesh out how the genetic mutations of each member of the Bad Batch makes them unique, and how these abilities sometimes cause friction with the “normal” clones. Hunter and his team are more individualistic, more prone to breaking the rules, which doesn’t earn them many friends within a society that expects them to follow all orders without question.

The second half of this arc also acts as an origin story for how Echo became the fifth member of the Bad Batch. It’s a pretty gruesome tale, but there’s also plenty of action if you want to see just how efficient Clone Force 99 are when it comes to blowing up droids.

The Clone Wars Season 7 Episodes 9-12

The final four-episode arc of The Clone Wars, titled “Siege of Mandalore,” is also the best of the entire series. While it doesn’t feature the Bad Batch at all, it does give us yet one other perspective on the events of Order 66. This time, we see the massacre from the point of view of the heroic Ahsoka Tano, Commander Rex, and the scheming Maul, who’s declared himself ruler of the Mandalorian home world.

The arc begins as a straightforward mission led by Ahsoka and Rex to capture Maul once and for all, but plans quickly change when Darth Sidious sets Order 66 in motion. While we all know the twist is coming, “Siege of Mandalore” still provides a shocking and exciting conclusion to Ahsoka’s story on The Clone Wars, while also showing the true cost of war.

The events of “Siege of Mandalore” happen somewhat at the same time as the first episode of The Bad Batch so watching this arc should give you a fuller picture of everything going on at the end of the war. We also know that Rex will appear on The Bad Batch, so these episodes are a good primer on who he is, too.

Other Clone Stories

When it comes to a franchise as expansive as Star Wars, I truly believe you should just watch the stuff you enjoy as opposed to sitting through every single episode or movie just to check off boxes. (For example, in my opinion, you can skip most of The Clone Wars in general and just watch these episodes.) But if you’re hellbent on being a completionist, you can also add Attack of the Clones as well as the first four episodes of The Clone Wars season 6 to your watchlist.

Attack of the Clones covers the start of the Clone Wars as well as the conspiracy behind the creation of the Clone Army. For a chunk of the movie’s runtime, we follow Obi-Wan Kenobi as he tracks a Separatist plot to assassinate Senate Padme Amidala. Once he learns the name of the bounty hunter trying to kill Padme, this leads him to Kamino, a distant planet where scientists are hard at work creating a massive army for a war to come. It’s in this movie that we learn that Jango Fett provided the genetic template for the entire Clone Army, which is why all the soldiers look just like him.

Interestingly enough, The Bad Batch indirectly addresses how that template has been stretched thin in the eyars since the opening salvo of the Clone Wars. It explains why new clones like the mysterious Omega are so different to the original template as well as why the Bad Batch developed genetic mutations.

Recurring Kaminoan characters on the animated series like Lama Su and Taun also made their first appearances in Attack of the Clones. Kaminoan scientist Nala Se recurred on The Clone Wars.

Meanwhile, The Clone Wars season 6 episodes 1-4 focus on a clone named Fives. After a clone trooper slays a Jedi on the battlefield, Fives is thrust into a conspiracy involving a plan to mind control the Clone Army with an inhibitor chip, the same one that will eventually force the clones to execute Order 66. Fives plans to uncover the truth behind the chips and reveal it to the galaxy before it’s too late. You can pretty much guess how that went…

Fennec Shand and Saw Gerrera

These next ones are also optional.

The trailers for The Bad Batch have already revealed that assassin Fennec Shand will appear on the show. This fan-favorite live-action character played by Ming-Na Wen was first introduced in The Mandalorian. Without spoiling anything, Fennec goes through her own kind of transformation on the live-action series that will likely be further explored on The Book of Boba Fett, where she’ll share top billing with Temuera Morrison’s beloved bounty hunter.

In The Bad Batch, we’ll get to see Fennec decades prior to her adventures on The Mandalorian. What was she up to years before she crossed paths with Din Djarin? We’re excited to find out!

And finally, there’s Saw Gerrera, another character we know will cameo on the show. He was first introduced in The Clone Wars season 5 episodes 2-5 and later appeared in Rogue One, played by Forest Whitaker. When we first meet Saw, he’s leading a rebellion against Separatist invaders on the planet Onderon. But, as Saw will learn on The Bad Batch, the fight for freedom just leads to another system of tyranny when the Empire comes into power. It’s a painful truth all of the heroes of the new animated series will be forced to discover.

Read more about The Bad Batch here.

The post Star Wars The Bad Batch: What You Need to Watch Before Starting the Show appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[faunusrights]

Headcanon: Succession

I am unsure if this fits within Submission guidelines, sorry!  ssh no more apologising only good posts

After the Faunus Rights Revolution came to a close and the White Fang was formed, those who had distinguished themselves found themselves being offered new ranks and roles. 

Some, like Kali Belladonna, exhausted from combat and high level politics, turned the offers down to rest and recover. 

Others, such as Sienna and Ghira, took to their roles with rigor. 

The first High Leader of the White Fang (Unnamed) had been a high ranking leader, though not quite general during the war and had been integral in negotiating a ceasefire. They chose Ghira to be one of their diplomatic seconds, while asking Sienna to be the new head of the White Fang’s security, a position she accepted gratefully. 

Over the course of the next few years Sienna spent her time training and organizing the White Fang’s security forces. Even going so far as to create a hidden class of ‘watchers’, Faunus who could escape notice or pass for human who disguised themselves and kept watch on the streets to report back suspicious activity or jump in to protect isolated Faunus under attack. 

She also began a youth training program, feeling no Faunus should be unable to defend themselves. While not popular with some of the more peaceful members, the voluntary nature of the program allowed it to continue. 

It was not many years before the White Fang;s leader stepped down however, promoting Ghira as their replacement. (The current High Leader was aging and wary of politicking) There was a brief election but no real challenger stepped up. 

Thing continued along there well know path for several years, in that time, one Blake Belladonna was born, Ilia would find herself orphaned and taken into the White Fang and Adam Taurus would catch several security force members eyes for his talent in combat. 

However, threats and pot holes were everywhere. 

Three overt threats stood in the way of the White Fang;s mission and Faunus equality. 

1. Indifference. With each year that passed, the number of politicians, councilor, new programs ETC that bothered to meet with the White Fang, let alone offer funding, vanished to the point of near non existence. Leaving the organization dependent on grass roots fund raising. The media narrative quickly stopped viewing the White Fang as a diplomatic organization and instead as ‘rabble-rousers’ just one of many groups of Faunus that could be dismissed as a ‘noise makers’ and 'thugs’. 

2. Human supremacy groups. Where most humans were content to ignore Faunus or passively benefit, for these groups that was not enough. They loathed how the last war turned out, hated that Faunus walked “their” streets and worked 'their" jobs in “Their” kingdoms, (The irony that Faunus built said Kingdoms was lost on them) These groups were organized thanks to the CCT, often had friends in the police, militia and hunting communities and would often prove extremely violent. 

3. The SDC and other large companies found ways around the Faunus’s 'on paper’ legal equality. Utilizing faulty contracts, biased work assignments (Sending Faunus to poorly equipped and dangerous mines) and going so far as to create debt slavery programs where they made basic supplies at their mines so expensive the workers would either starve of go into debt just to stay alive and be forced to work unfair hours just to break even.  (They often needed to do this slowly to avoid immediate emotional backlash luring in the Grimm, but once instituted the exhaustion would stop any overly large masses of Grimm from affecting the mines,) 

As mine accidents, tales of families torn apart and abuse revelations trickled into the kingdoms the White Fang pushed for recognition and aid, and were ignored. 

As police and hunter abused their power and struck down innocent Faunus, the White Fang asked for justice, and were ignored. 

When Human Supremacy organization burnt stores and attacked Faunus, Faunus were blamed or the humans found innocent of all wrong doing. 

Calls for unity, respect and common decency made in passionate speeches and chanted in streets were never broadcast or met by tear gas and riot police. 

Into this, the previous High Leader stepped in and with their carefully cultivated connection did, almost. seem to be helping arrange for some improvements. However, their life was threatened by human supremacy groups. 

Sienna Khan asked, nay pleaded, to allow her to assign a full escort to ensure their safety, but she was argued down. 

“Show you expect the worst and that is what people will often give you. But show hope and openness and you may just be surprised” the former leader and Ghira argued. 

Sienna held the opposite view. Feeling preparing for the worst would better let one meet it and cow those who would be too fearful to act should they know they would be met by resistance. 

However she was only able to assigned a small group of Watchers to the former High Leader. 

Within a week, Human Supremacy members, in hand with 'rogue’ police, raided their house and killed the retired High Leader. The Watchers too few and reinforcements too far to act. 

Grief, gripped the White Fang and the Faunus. The scene of Kali, Ghira and Sienna standing in the former High Leaders room and before their body, the sob and growls that filled the house forever burned into every Faunus presents memory. As was the horrendous abuse their former High Leader had suffered in death. 

Despite evidence and Gira’s demands, the police showed little interest in investigating (Sienna did not even bother asking, merely having a human passing Faunus bail her watchers out of prison). The former High Leaders allies, disappeared like puffs of smoke. returning to their base. 

Upon returning to base, tensions were high and the grief was thick. Arguments and accusations flew before exhaustion and grim acceptance claimed even the leadership. 

It was time for change. 

Without warning, Sienna Khan declared a challenge before Ghira and the White Fang’s core membership and so many others gathered for mourning or guidance. 

The humans have met the Faunus with fire and hatred since the dawn of time and have only ever listened to reason when it was accompanied by force. A noble advocate for peace and friendship was butchered in their own home, how long before they are all next? How long must their kin toil in the mines with none to offer them salvation, because morality alone will not make them listen? How long must the Faunus live in fear? 

Sienna Khan declared no more. 

She promised not to just speak for their people but to fight for them as well. To meet those who would take their lives, their homes and their freedom with fangs and claws bared and to those with the strength and will to do so, she asked them to stand with her. Those without, she asked they stand behind her, so she might shield them and be buoyed by their support. 

Ghira accepted the challenge and lost by an over 65 percent margin. After a respectful exchange of rank and power, Sienna Khan delivered a brief speech, before declaring the time for word had truly passed. 

It was time to get to work. 

Watcher were posted, security teams and volunteers organized and on that very night they struck at the heart of a large interconnected meeting of human supremacy organization. The humans celebrated the death of the High Leader and plotted next the death of other high ranking White Fang, whether for their rank, Ghira, power, Sienna, or seeming vulnerability, Kali. All with the intent of beginning a new Faunus war. 

They got the battle they were seeking. 

The power was cut and only the Scrolls connecting the other meeting members in the crammed warehouse shone. 

Then, a new light glowed, a furious, churning red as Sienna revealed herself and struck, followed by her soldiers. 

The battle was over within minutes, and to those watching, she had but one message: Human kind had not listened to reason, so they would know fear.

What followed was at first treated like a gang war, then riots, then a burgeoning revolution. 

Stores that served as human supremacy bases or supporters or that denied Faunus were burnt. High ranking Human Supremacy members found themselves cut down and even the mighty SDC was not safe as mine overseers and those that oversaw the deaths of debt slavery of thousands of Faunus were found dead. 

Sienna was careful though, she had accrued this information over years of long work as a byproduct of her duties as head of security. When she and her forces struck it was quickly efficiently and always on their specific targets and alone, with their motives and reasons laid out clearly when needed. 

As the violence rose, Ghira and Kali Belladonna returned to Menagerie but left their daughter who refused to join them under Sienna Khan’s aegis.  

Then, before a true war could break out, the White Fang scattered, went to ground  and snuck out of the kingdoms, coming to recollect at Fort Castle. From this fort mine liberation were organized, supply trains raided and their underground units within the kingdoms funneled their soldiers back in and new recruited joined in earnest, while Sienna Khan reached out to Faunus communities deep in the wilds and offer the White Fang’s aid. 

The Shadow War of the White Fang had begun.