#for the fourth... thriller maybe?

[puppetmaster55]

honestly I hope one piece live action gets all the seasons needed to tell the complete story, it's going wonderfully

[hauntingblue]

And WHERE is the gyojin island road poneglyph

[2hightocare]

LOVE WAGER! 01

Synopsis: Meeting a crazy stranger who cuts in line, tries to tell you love like the books doesn’t exist—it’s whatever. You won’t ever see him again… right?

Pairings: jungkook x fem!reader

Genre: college au. strangers to friends to lovers. forced proximity.

Warnings: mentions of divorce parents, Jungkook lowkey being insufferable, banter, cussing, a little bit of them being enemies, nicknames, oc being a hopeless romantic at heart, Jungkook being lowkey a cynic… them meeting each other so many times, choking!

a/n: first chapter out!! Woohoo, I’ve been keeping them close to my heart for quite some time. Ever since I listened to “in between” by Gracie Abrams.. I was inspired to write them—the song is so them coded.💌

★ masterlist!

3 years ago…

You were a hopeless romantic.

Most people called it being delusional— by people, you mean the random stranger in front of you.

The first time you met Jungkook, not only did he cut in front of you in line, but he also started shit-talking about how delusional you had to be to think romance books were even remotely comparable to real life.

The line at the cupcake shop was long. You had been wanting to try the new chocolate-covered strawberry flavor from your favorite cupcake shop in the city. The shop was always full, but today it was packed to the bone— the line almost reached outside the door. The people sitting at the cute pastel-colored tables were even leaving because the space was getting so crowded.

It was a Friday, and you had just left school. Your black backpack hung loosely over one shoulder as you stared down at your phone, trying not to die playing Subway Surfers. When your phone died, you internally groaned.

You mentally rolled your eyes before looking forward, where the line was starting to move faster. You were probably the fourth person in line, which was good since you'd only been there for around twenty minutes. You slipped your phone into the back pocket of your jeans before reaching for the zipper of your backpack—pulling out the latest book you hadn’t finished reading amidst all the assignments teachers had been bombarding you with. You thought it was dumb, considering it was your senior year in high school—why not just let you off easy?

You zipped up your backpack before slipping it on, tucking in the small hair that fell into your face when you opened your book. You moved forward as the line advanced, not bothered by the conversations from everyone around you—it was like your own brown noise, which you usually looked up on YouTube whenever you wanted to act like the main character in a movie.

Romance books were your thing. The same went for movies; you loved a good romantic story with the most cliché plot in the world—it did it for you every single time.

Your dad had tried getting you into self-help books, fiction books, or even those thriller books where you had to guess who kills who. He would back this up with actually learning something from reading a book, and you tried all those genres, you really did. You were the most specific girl there could be; if the book didn't impress you within one chapter, you closed it and moved on.

You were basically in love with the idea of love, imagining someone doing all those things you had seen in movies and read about, which filled you with hope that someone could care and love you that way. Yes, you believed in soulmates; you believed that someone, somewhere in this world, was destined to be with you, no matter the circumstances. You believed that if two people were destined for each other, they would find a way to each other, one way or another.

“Hi, baby, you still haven’t ordered? The line is so fucking long.” A strange boy, who looked around your age or maybe slightly older due to his eyebrow piercing, spoke up. He had a navy blue cap with the Yankees logo on the front, and you could see small pieces of his hair. It looked like a dark brown, but at some angles, it looked black, so you thought maybe he dyed it. He was cute, with a sharp jaw and dimples, which you immediately noticed when they showed on his left cheek as he bit his lip, waiting for you to reply.

“I’m sorry—“ you started, only to be cut off by him. “I've been meaning to show you this, babe.” He cut you off before basically shoving his phone into your face. His phone showed his notes app open with a text that read, ‘Please act like you know me so I can cut in line; it’s so long, and I have somewhere to be.’

Your brows furrowed at the pleading guy. You had no clue what his name was, but he looked like he was seriously about to lose his mind if he had to wait another minute in line. You shook your head before nodding— a smile burst on his face.

“Thank you,” he mouthed to you, to which you only shrugged before closing your book. “What flavor are you getting, lovebug?” He said, his nose scrunching in disgust at what he just said. A small laugh escaped your lips since that was the cringiest shit you had heard all day, maybe even all week if you didn’t count your dad trying to write you a poem about his love for your cat.

“I want to get the new chocolate-covered strawberry flavor. What about you?” You said, your fingers fidgeting with the pages of your closed book. His eyes dropped to your hands as you moved up in line, now second in line.

“Is that your book?” He said instead of replying to your question. “Yeah, do you read?” A spike of excitement was clear in your face and voice, only to be squashed when he opened his mouth.

“Do you actually believe anything in there is remotely realistic?” He said nonchalantly before removing his cap, letting his fluffy hair fall in his face before almost immediately collecting it back, placing his cap backward this time.

“I—“ you stutter, your mouth slightly agape, not knowing how to reply without sounding dumb. Because, yeah, you strongly believed romance books were able to happen in real life if someone loved you enough. “Well.. I mean, love happens anywhere,” you shrug, but he only nods his head in a condescending way. Not only were you helping him skip in line—he was basically criticizing your view on love.

“Well, duh, love happens, but all that cringey shit is the dumbest thing our generation normalized. Like, nobody is going to confess their love with a microphone in the middle of a dance-off,” he scoffs. You didn’t understand why he actually looked like he seriously hated the idea of making gestures for someone you loved or cared about.

“Well, obviously, I find that stupid as well, but there are other gestures to show your appreciation and love for someone.” You turn your whole body to face him. He’s not much taller than you, maybe two inches if you really wanted to know, and the cap maybe added another inch, but that didn’t matter since your eyesight was eye level with his.

“Love is embarrassing,” he says, crossing his arms in front of him. You felt the lady behind you both, her eyes bore into you both, trying to figure out why the supposed couple were fighting about love.

“How is love embarrassing?” You scoff before turning around to look in front of you, at the back of the head of the man who was ordering.

“Because love makes you do embarrassing shit all the time; that’s the easiest way I can put it for you, ribbons,” he replies with a duh tone, raising his eyebrows at you, which you see from your peripheral vision.

“Ribbons?” You turn to him, your arms crossed over your book as you glare at him. “Pink ribbon. Don’t you think you look a little too old to be wearing bows?” A grin appears on his face as he casually points to the pink ribbon tied into a bow in your hair.

“The fuck? Not only did I let you skip the line, but you’re a) talking shit about my favorite genre, and b) making fun of me wearing bows.” You turn your full body to him, which he only raises his hands in defense, as if you had a gun pointed at him.

“Damn, my bad. I thought this was a free country; you know your amendments, right?” He raises an eyebrow at you. “Yes, I fucking know my amendments,” you reply, absolutely annoyed at him bringing history into this.

“Freedom of speech,” he says before walking in front of you to the cashier. You were annoyed, maybe even angry. How dare he talk shit and say freedom of speech when you just did him a favor.

“He cut in front of me,” you point to him as you tell on him to the cashier, his jaw dropping to the floor. “Did you just tell on me? What the fuck,” he side-eyes you as you just shrugged.

“I respectfully need to ask you to go to the back of the line,” the cashier says, shooting you an apologetic look. You bite on the inside of your cheek to contain the smile that is threatening to slip out, as he sends you a mocking face, which you return, because apparently, you both were literal children. He rolled his eyes before he walked off.

2 years ago..

The second time you met Jungkook, you almost died due to choking on your coke.

You and your best-friend, Amelia, sat in a booth, munching on pizza, while you hear her ramble about the latest drama on campus.

“I can’t believe he cheated on her. I was so shocked, like I couldn’t believe he would do that after he literally gave her a promise ring—I heard it was expensive as well, bro,” Amelia said, stuffing a French fry in her mouth.

Amelia and you had been best friends since your freshman year at Preston University. She ended up in your dorm room by mistake, until security escorted her to her corresponding room. You both even had your calculus class together, which ended in both of you ripping your hair out because you truly had no clue what the professor was talking about.

“Oh my god, you’re lying!” you gasped, taking a bite of your folded pizza. “Alexandra said she didn’t care, but apparently, she was crying at the frat party we were supposed to go to yesterday,” Amelia said, pressing her lips together with wide eyes. As you were about to reply, she gasped.

“Holy shit, babes, don’t turn around, but there’s this fine-ass guy behind you,” she said. Without thinking you turned your whole body to look at the guy she was talking about.

“Or just turn your whole body, I don't care,” she added, rolling her eyes.

“Wait, who?” you asked, staring at the group of boys in front of you. They were all cute, just not your type whatsoever. “He just turned around, so you can’t see his face, but the one with the black beanie,” Amelia whispered to you as she took a sip of her Dr Pepper.

As you stared at the back of the boy who was engrossed in a conversation with his friend, a loud laugh escaped his lips before he threw his head back, letting you catch a glimpse of his face.

“Oh, fuck, his laugh is hot as fuck as well,” Amelia said behind you, chewing on her crispy fries. “Do you think he has a girlfrien—“ The words melted from your mouth as the beanie boy turned around. “Yeah, he definitely has a girlfriend,” Amelia said nonchalantly, clearly not catching how your eyes widened, as you both stare at the boy who had cut in front of you in line three years ago.

He was taller, much taller, and he was built—you could tell even from his oversized long-sleeve shirt. As much as you wanted to disagree, he was undeniably attractive. The eyebrow piercing was still there, but it somehow looked better than when you first saw it.

“Ribbons?” he said, pointing at you with a chuckle, making you flinch for absolutely no reason. Amelia looked between both of you, trying to read the room.

“Mr. anti-romantic?” You fired back, a huge smile breaking out on his face before he excused himself from his friend group and made his way to your booth. “I see you got a nickname for me... I feel honored,” he said, pressing a palm to his heart dramatically before shooting a nod at Amelia, who waved with a small smile on her face.

You just rolled your eyes. He was the most childish person you had ever met, and that says a lot since this was only the second time you'd ever spoken to him. “I wouldn’t be so honored,” you mumbled, shooting him a tight-lipped smile as he shook his head with a low chuckle.

“Do you have a girlfriend?” Amelia said out of nowhere, both you and the unknown boy's heads snap to the side as a smirk makes it’s way to his mouth, while you throw daggers at Amelia with your eyes for her blunt question. “I doubt he would ever hav—“ you start, only to be rudely interrupted by none other than Mr. anti-romantic himself.

“I actually do, and I was just about to meet her here, but I saw your friend and just had to come and say hello,” he said to your best friend, all while wearing a condescending smile.

“Oof, I feel bad for her,” you shrugged, before placing the straw of your clear cup in your mouth and sipping on your coke.

“Eh, she says I’m a pretty good boyfriend, not a hopeless romantic like someone I know,” he said, watching your eyes meet his before you tilted your head in a mocking way, which he picked up immediately.

“I wonder how you even got her to say yes to you,” you bit back, your eyes maintaining contact with his, not wanting to be the first to break it. But he was too good at it; you almost felt like crumbling into a ball from how intense his stare was.

“I guess you could say there are more ways to please a woman without love letters,” he said nonchalantly. You choked on your coke as the liquid went down the wrong pipe, making you start having a coughing attack.

His and Amelia’s eyes widened as Amelia immediately swatted the man who was right beside you. His hand made contact with your arm, raising it up in the air.

“The fuck are you doing?” Amelia said aggressively, side-eyeing him, as you basically died in front of their wondering eyes. You really didn’t expect him to just talk about his sexual life so openly without a care. You would want to crawl into a hole if your boyfriend ever talked about your private moments like that to anyone.

“My mom said if you put someone’s hand up, it makes your cough go away. I don’t fucking know! I’m not a doctor,” he shot back at your best friend as he raised your arm in the air. Your cough slightly disappeared as you tapped on your chest as if that would do anything to stop it.

“Are you good?” Amelia said as she basically hovered over the table. You felt the whole dinner's eyes on you as you tried to recover from the insane coughing fit you just had. “Y-yeah, fuck,” you coughed, your arms still up in the air from his hold. “I almost for real thought you were about to die. I already imagined myself behind bars,” he said, rubbing his unoccupied hand through his face with a sigh.

“Now I’m hoping I actually died,” you said, yanking your arm away from his grasp.

“We’re leaving, Amelia. Let’s go,” you said, standing up, collecting your jacket and bag, and pushing him out of the way, standing up beside him.

He hovered over you; you almost wanted to jump up to reach his height, but you were already embarrassed enough. So instead, you fixed your denim skirt before looking up at him.

“Well, it was so not nice to see you again, and hopefully we don’t get to meet again, Mr. anti-romantic. Goodbye,” you said as you sent him a fake smile his way.

You pulled on Amelia’s hand before she could say anything and walked out of the dining room without looking back at the boy who was standing in the same place, watching the girl he almost witnessed pass away by choking on coke from him even remotely bringing up sex.

A small chuckle left past his lips as he made his way to the table where his friends were seated.

“Dude, what the fuck happened? Why was that pretty girl coughing like crazy?” Taehyung said, eyeing the door through which you had just left.

Jungkook didn’t know why his heart picked up when his best friend called you pretty. He wasn’t blind; you were beautiful. When he first met you, you both were obviously much younger. If it wasn’t for how much you had grown into your face and the braces you once had were long gone, it would’ve been your aura that gave it away. You were more outspoken, which kinda took him back but sent a sense of excitement through his body.

“No clue. Just some girl I met in my senior year... kinda taken aback I ran into her again,” Jungkook said before picking up the menu from the table, looking for what food he should order. “Maybe it’s fate, bro,” Namjoon teased, which made Jungkook drop his menu on the table.

“You guys know all that shit is bullshit, right? It was just a coincidence. I’ll probably never see her again after this,” Jungkook rolled his eyes, leaning backward onto the booth and crossing his arms in front of him defensively.

“Whatever you say, champion,” Hoseok whistled as he called the waitress.

Jungkook's brain immediately canceled out the noise as he started running through all the possible scenarios that would leave you both at the same place at the same time. His body shook from the possibility of it being fate; he hated the idea of the answer being anything besides actual proven fact. He didn’t care how cynical he might sound; he had trusted so many people in his life, including his parents, who always preached about love and honesty. But flash forward to him having to skip around each house of his parents every weekday and weekend. He hated how he believed them when they said love can get through everything. Absolutely not—divorce.

He just imagined your perfect household, two parents at the same home who still say ‘I love you’ to each other every chance they get. You get to read your books in your living room without a fight breaking out out of nowhere just because someone forgot to throw the trash out.

Love didn’t exist in his eyes. He believed in mutual respect. He doesn’t believe in the whole crazy in love charade. His girlfriend Haneul didn’t really want the whole whispering cute things in each other's ears or dancing under the moon either, and that’s why he chose her.

Plus, he wasn’t an asshole when it came to love when it came to other people. Did he want to ruin their moment and tell them they wouldn’t last? Yes—but he never does.

He saw how broken his mom was after the divorce. He thought about the idea of love and if someone came to love you, you would do anything in your power to not hurt them. It had been five years since his parents’ divorce, and everyone seemed to have moved on perfectly, while Jungkook watched how his perspective of love changed drastically over time.

He was glad that you didn’t have to go through what he had to go through, given your obvious naivety. That was entirely the only reason he shit-talked about love when he first met you, which was the most jackass move he could’ve done, especially after you let him skip the line. But after you told on him to the cashier like a little child, he was thinking of actually tackling you.

Either way, it didn’t matter for him to be worrying or thinking about you in the first place, when he didn’t even know your name. Plus, he would never see you again, that’s for sure.

Present day..

Psychology class was your number one nemesis. You literally begged the counselor to let you have another class that wasn’t psychology. Not only did he laugh, but he said it would do you good. In your mind, he basically called you crazy—maybe you did need the class after all.

As you huffed and puffed to your last class of the day, you fixed your glasses on your face and tightened the high ponytail with the white ribbon that matched the outfit Amelia helped you pick out. You pushed open the door to the class and were greeted by half-empty seats and no professor, giving you the option to choose where you sat.

You were a middle-seat row girl, unable to see far away without your glasses. You also avoided sitting too close to the front, fearing teachers would call on you.

As you took a seat in the chair, a body sat beside you without a word. You didn’t even care to look as you took out your laptop from your backpack, worrying about how this year’s professor might be. You had heard from last year’s students that the teacher might have been the devil’s spawn.

While you were finally seated, you moved your head to your left to see the body next to you engrossed in their phone. Your jaw dropped as you were met with none other than Mr. Anti-Romantic.

“What the actual fuck, are you stalking me or something?” you said, absolutely baffled by how many times you had run into him and from all the empty seats, he decided to sit next to you.

He immediately raised his head from his phone, his eyes widening as he stared at your obviously angry face. “Ribbons? What the actual fuck, I didn’t realize that was you,” he said, throwing his head back in shock.

“You had to know it was me, why else would you sit beside me?” you scoffed, crossing your arms in front of you. He looked the same as the last time you saw him, except now he had a full sleeve of tattoos on his right arm, and the eyebrow piercing was long gone.

Now that he was closer to you, you could see the small mole he had under his lip and the scar on his cheek. His hair was shorter and black, but classroom lights deceived, so maybe it was fully brown, but you didn’t dare to ask.

“Don’t think you’re special, Ribbons. I just can’t see from the back, and in the front, teachers always pick on you to talk in front of the class, and I’m trying to avoid that,” he explained, having the same process as you, but unfortunately, the other half of his brain didn’t process the idea of love.

“Are you sure you have the right class?” you bit out, hoping he had walked into the wrong class and would have to leave immediately. You seriously couldn’t even wrap your head around the fact that he was here and that he went to the same university as you—this being the first time he had seen you around campus.

“Psychology class A65,” he side-eyed you as you rolled your eyes and faced the board, trying your best to ignore his presence.

“You know you can just move to another seat, right?” he said, pointing to all the empty seats beside you. Your head slowly turned to the side to face his face as he gave you a tight-lipped smile.

“Why would I move when I was here first?” you scoffed his way as he shrugged, indicating that he couldn’t care less. “’Cause I truly don’t care, but you obviously seem affected by my presence, so Ribbons, pick your seat,” he pointed to the available seats.

You imagined the easiest way you could kill someone, but tackling him to the ground at this exact moment might bring attention to you both, so you just breathed out of your nose before giving him a fake smile and rolling your eyes.

“I’m not leaving, and for your information, I’m perfectly fine and not bothered by your presence whatsoever,” you said, trying your best to seem as calm and collected as possible.

“For your information…” he mocked beside you, trying to imitate your voice before chuckling. “I swear, Ribbons, I can see smoke coming out of your ears and nose,” he laughed.

“Stop calling me Ribbons,” you gritted your teeth, already at your limit.

“What else do you want me to call you? I don’t know your name, and you’re still wearing ribbons, I can see,” Mr. Anti-Romantic pointed to the white ribbon in your hair. You rolled your eyes before sending his calm, collected figure a scanty smile.

“Y/n,” you said, tilting your head to the side, as if asking him to tell you his name. “I like Mr. Anti-Romantic, not gonna lie,” he bit his lip, trying to contain his laughter as you were about to lose your composure at any moment.

“You aggravate me, and I don’t know why,” you mumbled, hoping he didn’t hear—but he did, loud and clear. “Jeon Jungkook,” he said, and before you could reply, the professor strode in, wearing the weirdest clothes you could imagine.

“She looks like that one crazy Victorious teacher,” he whispered softly, only for you to hear, smugly bending downward so you could hear better. A small laugh left your lips. “Sikowitz?” you whispered back as both of you stared forward at the professor, who was talking about the syllabus. “Yeah, spot the difference: hard level,” he whispered.

You looked down at your hands, trying to hide the amusement on your face.

For the rest of the class, you guys didn’t talk whatsoever, and honestly, you wouldn’t know if he tried, since you were absorbed in whatever Mrs. Calderon was saying.

“So, here’s where you start hating me, I’m giving you guys a project,” she said, leaning on her desk, making the desk creak. You could hear small groans from students around you, but not loud enough for her to hear.

“It will be a partner project, which I chose randomly, and no, I’m not changing them. I want you guys to be able to work with whomever, no matter what,” she said, a sense of dread passing through you.

“I would email each and every one of you what the project is about. It is due at the end of the quarter, so I better not hear, ‘I didn’t have time, Miss,’” Mrs. Calderon said before picking up a sheet of paper.

"Here are the partners, so after class, come and check who your partner is so you can start talking about what you both will do." With that the bell ringing, everyone stood up and rushed to the paper, including yourself. You held tightly onto your backpack strap as you waited for people to move out of the way—half of the people bitched about who they got, they couldn’t possibly be that bad.

Your heart dropped to your ass as you read your name—Jungkook squished beside you, looking for his name, only to find it where your finger was already on.

You got paired up with Jungkook. What kind of fuckery was this?

As Jungkook read "Y/n Y/ln & Jeon Jungkook," he couldn’t believe his eyes. He almost lost his mind when he realized it was you when he sat next to you, but he tried his best to act unaffected. However, this was too much of a "fuck you" sign from the universe—Jungkook didn’t think he did something so horribly to be rewarded like this.

What the fuck were the odds, and how could he scientifically prove that it’s not the universe trying to mess with him?

Taglist💌— @httpjeonlicious @thekookiedealer @somehowukook @taiwan0618 @gwsjungkookie @seokout @sealuv79 @junecat18 @joonsanswer @letjungcoook7 @skzthinker @ahgasegotarmy116recs @ivygguk (I couldn’t add some idk why😓)

[zoestormwriting]

New book announcement!

My new book, The Brightest Stars, is now available for preorder as an e-book on Amazon!

What's this book about, you ask? Well, here's the blurb:

Estelle’s life is pretty boring, all things considered: she doesn’t have much to worry about, she spends her days on archeological digs deep below the surface of Mars and writing scientific articles on the aliens who ruled over the Solar System many millennia ago. But nothing lasts forever. Unexpectedly, Estelle and her mentor unearth long-lost knowledge which, if revealed, could dramatically shift the balance of power between nations, and possibly even turn the ongoing cold war between the major factions in the Solar System into a blazing hot one. So now Estelle has to flee, leave her home behind in a bid to keep that knowledge from falling into the wrong hands; and along the way, she’ll have to decide where the lines of loyalty are drawn… and whom she can trust.

If I had to describe it really briefly, in one sentence: "Hard sci-fi spy thriller set in the twenty-fourth century."

Or maybe you'd like "Bond story from the point of view of the Bond Girl (who's a lesbian and asexual)."

Is your interest piqued? Then I have a clicky link for you right here 🙂

The release date is set for Saturday, July 20th, and it will be available as an e-book and as a paperback, and, in a first from me, it will be available to read on Kindle Unlimited!

I've put quite a bit of effort into writing this book, and I hope you'll like it ❤️

[sugarmuseum]

DOUBLE KILL | L.MK, L.DH | TEASER!

PAIRING: Mark Lee & Lee Donghyuck x female!reader

GENRE: smut, horror, thriller, college!au, frat!au

SUMMARY: As the campus gets filled with a bunch of frat members dressed as Ghosface for a Halloween joke, you suddenly get dragged into your own scary movie when someone decides you’ll be the protagonist.

WORD COUNT (teaser): 873 words.

AUTOR'S NOTE: edit this fic it's taking me a little more than i expected *deep sigh* i'll do my best to post it this week but in the meantime here's a teaser!

You put down your phone and walked away to finally get on your pajamas to sleep, when it lit up with another incoming call. These guys didn’t sleep or what? This time you looked at the ID, a private number. Knowing that NCT's day of nonsense is clearly not over, you answered but put it on speaker this time. 

"Hello?" You responded for the third or fourth time today, starting to undress and choosing a large, worn-out t-shirt, pulling it over your head. As no one said anything on the other line, you frowned. "Junie, you were supposed to call Yangyang, not me," you reminded him.

"This is not Renjun," a distorted voice said. You turned to look at your phone for a second, hesitating, and then continued taking off your clothes, now tossing your jeans into the laundry basket.

"Oh? So who is it then?" You asked as you rolled your eyes, feeling tired of playing this game so late. You took your phone and turned off the speaker, and turned off the lights as well. You laid down in your bed in the dark, stretching with a small sigh, happy to be in the comfort of your sheets after a long day. 

"Someone else. Going to bed already?" The caller asked, sounding interested, the low and seductive voice catching you a bit off guard. It's not the playful tone that others had used.

‘’Yeah, I was just about to,’’ you replied, turning on the small flat-screen TV in your room, looking for something on Netflix while holding the phone to your ear. ‘’Although I might put on a movie for some white noise, it helps me sleep.’’

"What movie?" The voice inquired you, tone deep and low.

‘’I don't know, maybe a horror movie,’’ you murmured, putting a random one and lowering the tv volume a little. "It's Halloween season, after all.’’ 

"A horror movie it’s gonna relax you? People stabbed and blood does that to you?’’ The caller chuckled darkly, mocking you. ‘’What's your favorite scary movie?" He asked, the altered voice resonating against your ear.

You took a pause, thinking for a few seconds. To everyone who had asked before, you had given different answers and lies to keep up the joke and ruin the original script, but this time you decided to respond with the truth, laughing quietly at how ridiculous it would sound.

"Scream," you admitted, tossing the remote aside and curling up under the blankets, keeping your eyes on the movie. "You guys, don't you get tired of making the same calls during the day? You're all going to drain the battery of that damn thing before Halloween.’’

‘’What do you like about that movie?’’ The voice ignored your last comment. 

"I find it original, I like how it mocks and pays homage to the clichés and rules of slashers," you replied, unable to prevent another big yawn from escaping. "Drew Barrymore has the most iconic scene," your attention was diverted to your door, listening to noises from downstairs. They were probably sisters returning to the building.

"Are you tired, sweetheart? I bet you were finishing your homework like the good girl you are, I am right?" The caller said, making you frown with a strange feeling forming inside you upon hearing the nickname. But you couldn't tell if it was fear or something else.

"How do you know that?" You asked, curious but a bit hesitant. 

"I saw you in the library today, looking so distracted and a bit... skittish," the voice commented with a small laugh that had you swallowing hard. "Is something making you nervous?"

‘’You know what? Yes, some group of idiots are bothering students everywhere," you mocked with your eyes closed, ready to sleep. "Including me. It's annoying."

‘’Well, in that case I hope the distractions don't make you forgetful. You remembered to lock the door, right? Did you set the alarm?’’ The caller asked, taunting you.

You could only blink as you slowly sat up in bed. The atmosphere had changed, and you felt a sense of discomfort and a bit of fear from his words, especially when the voice laughed hoarsely against your ear, as if he knew something you didn't. No one knows that today it's my turn to set the security system, you thought. 

‘’You should check that, baby. If the door’s not locked… maybe there’s someone’s already inside,’’ the voice said.

You remembered the noises you heard from downstairs. Did you set the alarm before, right? Wasn't the door closed? No sister could enter after curfew, you assured yourself, glancing a bit frantically at the time on your phone. Past midnight. You were so tired after a day that had started so early, then the classes and the quiz you had been answering for hours— no. 

You locked the door and put the security code on. Stop, you’re getting paranoid, you chastised yourself, it's just the boys being annoying. Right?

"Are you scared?" The electronic, smooth voice asked in a mocking tone, as if it knew exactly that you were going a little crazy. "Do you want me to come and help you calm down? Just open your door for me. Maybe I’m standing behind it..."

[astral--horrorshow]

Red Snow - Platonic Yandere Mud Dogs x GN Reader

A/N: Happy spooky month, everyone!! This is the first of two stories I'm going to release for October. They're based off of horror/thriller media, and credit to @yandere-toons for the inspiration of merging a horror movie with a yandere scenario with their Invader Zim story!

This story is based off of the film "No Exit", and even though the protag in the film and this share the same name, they aren't the same, that's a just a coincidence.

Try to guess what the second story is based off of! Here's a hint: It most likely served as inspiration for a nordic horror game that's getting a third installment in 2024!!

If anyone wants to draw fanart based off of this story or take any sort of inspiration based off of it, please feel free!! I'd be happy to see anything you make!

Her: You better not be writing a 6000+ fanfic for characters who only had 5 minutes of screentime when I get there!

Me:

~

Warning: This story is meant for entertainment purposes only and not meant to romanticize or encourage any of the behaviors found in it.

TW: a gun, blood, kidnapping, restraints, semi infantilizism, being struck, hinted fear mongering, slight gore, death, this is strictly platonic

Word Count: 6246

Summary: Darby is stranded at a rest stop in a snowstorm with 5 complete strangers when they unveil a chilling discovery.

~

Darby wrapped their hands around the mug of coffee, warming their hands up through their fur. They sighed in relief as they began to feel their fingers again, the snow melting.

A snowstorm raged outside, beating against the windows of the rest stop and coating them with layer after layer of dull frost. Looking around, Darby swallowed hard as they took a nervous glance at the people they would be sharing the rest stop with for the foreseeable future. Three other yōkai shared the table in the center of the room with them, with a fourth napping in the corner of the room, and another making himself a cup of coffee. Their hand instinctively drifted to the pocket on their jeans, attempting to soothe their nerves by rubbing the denim-covered contents. The air was thick and hard to breathe in, not with Darby’s nerves.

“What’s your name, kid?”

The cat yōkai jolted, yanking their hand away from their pocket and staring at the bat yōkai from across the table. “Sorry?” They breathed out, trying to regain the air in their lungs.

“I said, what’s your name?”

“Oh! Oh. Darby, sorry…”

“Nothing to apologize for,” the bat said, reaching up and scratching his big ear, “But you’ll want to get used to me. We’ll be here for a while.

Darby swallowed again, and nodded. The bat gave a half-smile to them, and spoke again.

“I’m Rafferty, and this is my wife-”

“Juane,” the borzoi yōkai next to him butted in.

“Right, Juane,” Rafferty turned to the eel on Darby’s right and opened his mouth, but the eel beat him to it.

“I’m Mickey!” He said, cheerfully.

“Well, hello, Mickey.” Juane said, staring at him with a turned head. Mickey grinned at her, which unsettled Darby. In fact, all of the yōkai in that room freaked them out. They didn’t know what it was. Maybe it was the way Juane’s eyes seemed to stare at them from behind her long snout, maybe it was Rafferty’s intimidating aura or Mickey’s freaky grin.

Everyone sat in near-silence again, the sound of the coffee maker and the snowstorm being the only companion to the yōkai’s ears. Mickey looked like he wanted to say something, but he took a glance at the rat making the coffee, and kept his mouth shut. Darby took notice of this, and an uneasy feeling burrowed into their stomach. Maybe they were overthinking it, but maybe not. Why would Mickey stop himself from talking after looking at a stranger?

Darby clutched their knees. They needed to be away from people, to clear their head. They stood up from the table, the grating sound of the chair scooting back on the hardwood making them internally wince. They half-stumbled to the bathroom, unaware of the burning stare boring into their back.

Inside the bathroom, Darby pulled out their phone to find it had no service. Even though they were expecting it, being in a rest stop in the middle of nowhere with a snowstorm raging outside, they still groaned. The thought of being completely stranded with the unsettling strangers that they had just met made them feel sick. They buried their head in their hands, taking a deep breath. Maybe they could get some service outside. They needed to get away from all of that thick air, anyways.

Darby trekked out of the bathroom, not sparing even a passing glance at the other yōkai while they walked towards the doors. They pushed the doors open, the frigid air drawing all heat from their body and bits of ice pelting their coat and nose. They didn’t mind. It was freeing. Refreshing, even. Their boots crunched against the snow as they took their phone out of the pocket of their olive green jacket, holding up like a flare in hopes of getting at least a single bar. They tramped around in the thick snow, trying not to let go of their phone by gripping as tight as they could with their quickly numbing fingers.

A metallic-sounding thud barley pierced Darby’s ears through the vociferous whistling of the storm, but they heard it, nonetheless. There was another thud, and Darby snapped their head towards the vehicle it came from, a large, dark van.

Darby lowered their phone and stumbled towards the van, glancing back at the rest stop windows. Nobody had moved or was looking at them. They jumped behind the van, standing at its back doors. One of the windows had been covered up with something, but the other one had only snow as its curtain. They wiped away the snow with their hand, and immediately jumped back.

There was a human in the van.

Your arms and shins were tightly bound together with rope, and a gag covered your mouth. You banged on the window with your arms and Darby could hear you whimper as they stumbled back in shock. Shaking off their surprise, they turned back to the window again to make sure that nobody was looking, and threw themselves to the door window.

“Hey, hey, I’m gonna get you out of here, alright? I’m gonna help you, you’re gonna be okay.”

You continued to whimper, attempting to open the van doors with your bound and mittened hands to no avail. Darby tried the doors, too. Locked.

Darby panted in fear, eyes widening when they glanced back at the window and saw a figure standing tall with their back turned. Darby practically leaped to the other side of the van, pressing their back to it and holding their hand up to their chest, feeling their heart beating fast. They didn’t want to believe that they were in this situation, that they were dreaming, or hallucinating.

Taking a deep breath, they attempted to calm their nerves. They only had to play it cool until they could get help. But who knows how long that would be? And they didn’t even know who the van even belonged to! Everyone in there was an equal suspect, and Darby didn’t even know the other two’s names! They groaned and tugged on their ears. The cat yōkai couldn’t just pull you out, but there had to be a way to help, there had to!

Darby smoothed some of the frazzled fur on their head and took another breath. It was going to be hard, but playing cool was their only option until they could deduce who the owner of the van was, or at least get one bar of service. They walked back to the rest stop, holding their phone above their head again.

They tucked it back into their pocket when they opened the doors, swallowing the lump in their throat when they saw the two other yōkai, now sitting at the table. The rat decked out in purple smiled at Darby as they walked inside with what might’ve been a warm smile if he didn’t have such an air of coldness to him. Darby tried their best to smile at him back, though it probably looked more like a grimace. They didn’t smile much, anyways.

They sat back down in their chair, taking in the sight of playing cards on the table and the scent of cheap instant coffee wafting in the air. “Well, hello,” the rat said in a friendly tone, “It looks like we have everyone here! My name’s Danny.”

He reached a hand out to Darby, and they gingerly shook it. “Darby…”

Though the ogre yōkai to the right of Danny was sitting at the table with everyone else, he didn’t make any move to speak, focusing more on the deck of cards in his hands, which he was shuffling with his thick fingers. Darby eyed him nervously. Silent and sullen-seeming, he might’ve been the type to hide a human in his van, but Darby stopped themself from making any assumptions. If there was one thing their mother taught them, it’s that one can’t judge from feeling alone. Darby knew plenty of quiet and sullen people, including themself. That didn’t mean that they had a human in their car. The snake in the grass could be any one of the people they shared the table with.

“So, where are you all headed?”

Rafferty struck up conversation again, glancing around at everyone. “I’m headed to Shimmering Isle with Juane.”

“I’m going to the Enclave. Don’t you just need a change of scenery every once in a while?” Danny said, raising his coffee cup up to his mouth.

“That’s neat, son. And where are you headed, Darby?”

Darby’s throat went dry as they opened their mouth to speak, eyes darting around the room as they tried to think up a place for them to say. They just wanted to get away from the Hidden City, they didn’t realize they would have to lie to a stranger about it.

Luckily for them, Danny spilled his coffee on Mickey, and luckily for Mickey, it was only lukewarm at that point. Still, he groaned when the dark liquid stained his bright orange t-shirt and ran down his tail. Danny apologized profusely, but it didn’t seem genuine to Darby. Maybe not to Mickey, either, as he was glaring at Danny like he had just defaced a priceless family heirloom.

Darby took advantage of the commotion and slipped inside the bathroom again, looking around for a window or a back door until they saw a big hole covered up with a piece of flimsy plywood. They grabbed a crowbar near the hole, and pried it open with some effort. They rushed back to the van and slipped the edge of the crowbar between the cracks of the passenger seat door, prying it open, too.

The cat yōkai crawled inside the car and closed the door behind them, practically diving to you. They lifted up your head gently, awkwardly petting it with their other hand in an attempt to soothe your cries and whimpers from behind your gag. “Hey, it’ll be fine, it’ll be fine,” they repeated like a mantra, trying to convince themselves more than you. “My name is Darby, and I’m gonna get us out of here, okay? We’re gonna get out here.”

Darby grabbed the side of your gag, attempting to pull it off when they heard the driver’s side handle jiggling, whoever was attempting to open it was having a hard time. Darby’s eyes widened, and their eyes darted around to find a hiding place. Spotting a pile of blankets in the corner right behind the driver’s seat, they slipped under it, tucking the crowbar in, pulling their legs in and internally praying that their ears didn’t stick out.

The door opened, and someone slid into the front seat. Yanking the door shut, Mickey’s voice muttered angrily.

“You could’ve just tapped me, you could’ve done ANYTHING but spill coffee on me! Man, this is totally gonna stain!”

Tears ran down your face as you craned your neck to gaze up at Mickey, curling into yourself on the floor. He heard your sniffles and looked down at you, his face now set in gentle confusion and concern instead of the death glare he sported merely a moment ago. “Oh, sorry, little pike. I didn’t mean to scare you,” he said, “It’s just- Danny can be such an a-” Mickey cut himself off, taking a deep, shaky breath. “Danny can be very mean… sometimes.”

He said this through gritted teeth, as though it was physically painful for him to talk in the way one would to a kindergartener. He ran his arm over the fin on the top of his head, closing his eyes. “Oh, yeah!” He exclaimed, opening his eyes again, “I’m supposed to be checking on you. Are you okay?” He took notice of your puffy eyes and shaky breaths, “You don’t look so good-”

MIckey halted his sentence, his eyes widening as he looked at the uncovered back window and the piece of cardboard near your feet, “What the hell?! Did you do that?!” He pulled himself into the back, scrambling towards the door. He snatched the cardboard up from the floor and put it back on the window before turning back around to you. “We told you not to touch the windows!”

You started to sob again, eyes shutting tightly as you curled up into yourself. “Hey, hey, hey, don’t cry. You’re gonna be okay.” Mickey switched back to his gentle tone, petting your head with his arm, “Trust me, things’ll get a lot better when we get to Jadetown.” He said this while using his other arm to reach into one of the many boxes in the van, pulling out a shirt exactly like the one he was wearing, except that it didn’t have a coffee stain on it. He pulled off his black coat, inspecting the stormy fur that lined the hood to see if there was any trace of coffee on it, and set it aside to change his shirt.

After Mickey pulled his coat back on, he grinned at you and petted your head again. “I have to go back inside now, people’ll think I’ve died, haha!” He clambered back into the driver's seat and got out of the van. He slithered towards the rest stop again, pulling his jacket closer around him. Mickey wasn’t paying attention to the world in front of him, as always, so it was a surprise when he bumped into the chest of Leonard, with Danny behind him. If looks could kill, the ogre yōkai would have a bigger body count than he already had, but it wasn’t directed at Mickey, no, he was glaring at their van. The eel looked back at him and the van, confused.

“What is it, Len?” Mickey asked, “Is there a scratch on the paint, or-”

“No, there isn’t a scratch!” Leonard snarled, “Where’s the cat?”

Mickey looked back to the van, eyes shooting towards the bootprints leading towards its back door.

~

Once they were sure that Mickey was back inside, Darby slipped out of it again, and rushed over to you again. This time, they were able to take off your gag, and you coughed and cried and took shaky, deep breaths as though your head had just been let up out of a bucket of water. Darby lifted your head up, wrapping an arm around your back in support.

“What did he mean by ‘we’? Are there other people with him?”

You let out another sob, “Yes, yes, yes- Please, please help me…” You spoke incoherently after you has answered Darby’s question, but their blood ran cold as they looked up and saw three figures standing outside of the rest stop door, their stares rapt on the van. Darby’s fur stood up on end, and after they stumbled back, tipping a few boxes over mistakenly, they pulled open the back door and fell into the snow. They scrambled into the surrounding forest, hoping to loop back while your kidnappers were distracted.

You felt the hope that you would be saved disappear with Darby into the trees, tears flowing from your eyes and down your face in grief for your potential freedom. The harsh wind from the open door felt bitterly cold. The sliding door on the side of the van was yanked open by Leonard, who looked at the open back door and the objects littered around the van from Darby’s getaway. He seethed in anger, clenching his fist. “Mickey, come with me. Danny, stay here.” As he and Mickey ran off after the cat yōkai who could ruin everything for them, Danny got into the back of the van and closed all the doors. After he re-fastened the gag around your mouth, he pet your cheek and smiled.

Darby stumbled through the trees, pushing branches out of their way and trying not to trip over roots and rocks hidden under the heavy snow. They heard shouting behind them, along with the faint sound of a pair of footsteps that weren’t their own and what sounded like something being dragged across the snow.

The farther they ran, the harder it was for them to keep their balance. They nearly slipped with every step, but they refused to let themself give up. If those criminals caught them, they would be as good as dead. Darby started to practically climb up the hill, seeing the distant light from the rest stop glowing above their head. The running and shouting was getting closer, “Get back here! You’ll ruin everything!”

They ignored every word the ogre and the eel shouted at them, only focused on their goal; get back to the stop and tell Rafferty and Juane what was going on. That was the only way they would have even a sliver of a chance saving you. The light grew brighter, they were almost there! But anything that seems too good to be true usually is, for the moment they caught a glimpse of the roof, Danny jumped in front of them from seemingly nowhere, making them stumble back.

The back of their boot snagged on a root hidden deep beneath the glimmering snow, but instead of falling back on the hill and landing upside-down, they started to roll down the hill, getting face-full after face-full of dirt, leaves, and snow. Leonard reached out to grab them, but they knocked him over so that he started to roll, too.

Darby and Leonard hit a tree, hard. It knocked the wind out of Darby’s lungs, but Leonard was able to recover faster. Darby opened their swirling eyes and saw a gun slipping out of the inside pocket of Leonard’s jacket as he was reaching out for them. Just as it fell out, they shot their hand out and gripped it like their life depended on it, which it did.

Quickly regaining their senses, Darby pushed themself back with their feet, taking advantage of Leonard’s shock to stand up and point the gun in front of them, shifting its aim between Danny, Mickey, and Leonard, who had stood up and was closing in on them with the other two.

“Come on, kid,” Danny said, “We don’t want trouble. Hand over the gun and keep your mouth shut, and nothing bad will happen to you.”

“I’m not an idiot, don’t lie to me!” Darby said, voice raised, “Stay away, or I’ll shoot you. I’ll do it!”

Danny honed in on the way they were holding the gun, and scoffed internally. They didn’t know how to use that thing. If he were to run out and grab it, he would’ve been able to push them into the stream aways down before they figured out where the trigger was.

“No, you won’t. Come on, we want to get out of here just as much as you do.”

“I bet you do. Why do you have a human?”

“It’s impolite to ask about other people’s business, dear,” he condescended, taking tiny steps forwards.

“It’s everyone’s business if you have it tied up!”

“You don’t know anything!” Leonard yelled, making Darby jump.

The moment the cat's eyes flitted away from him, Danny lunged at them. The two struggled with the gun for a few seconds before it fired into the snow, startling everyone. Darby pushed the rat off of them and made a mad dash towards the top, going as twice as fast as they had before. Crashing footsteps sounded through the forest, but this time, only in the forest. There was no fourth accomplice waiting to grab them at the stop, so they made it safely into the rest stop again, slamming the glass doors behind them. Rafferty and Juane stared at them, apt confusion on both of their faces.

“What’s wrong, Darby? What’s going on?”

The cat was out of breath, holding their hand up to their chest and wheezing. “Dan, Mick, Leonard-”

“What about them-” Rafferty began to inquire, but cut himself off at the sight of the aforementioned yōkai nearing the door, each with a menacing look and a weapon in their hand. Darby turned to face them and wondered, did they get the other two from the truck? They probably did, Darby thought, but shook their head. It wasn’t important where they got the weapons when they were closing in like a kettle of vultures to roadkill.

“What are they doing, Darby?” Juane asked, holding on to her husband's arm as they backed up out of their seats.

“They have a human tied up in their van, and they know I know it.”

The two elder yōkai gasped, holding on to each other tighter. “What are we going to do?” Juane asked, “I haven’t fought since-”

“No, no. Go hide.” Darby interrupted, “I started this. I’ll finish it.”

Rafferty and Juane looked at each other for a moment, then nodded. Darby continued to stare down the approaching criminals as the sound of swift footsteps faded behind them. Each of them had a murderous look on their face.

As they got closer and closer, Darby realized something. They had no weapon of their own. They left the crowbar in the van, and even if they did have it, they were facing three yōkai that had probably killed before. Darby never once won a schoolyard fight, what made them think they could take on three criminals? They backed up as they thought of the foolishness of their plan, mentally berating themself for their impulsiveness.

This was all their fault. They were going to be murdered, then Rafferty and Juane would probably be found and face the same fate. Then you would get carted off to who-knows-where and be subjected to who-knows-what. For the first time in months, tears welled up in Darby’s eyes as they stumbled backwards and hit the wall.

~

You squirmed across the floor towards the pile of blankets in the corner that Darby had taken refuge under. None of your captors has time to search the van. You shoved your bound arms under the blanket, feeling up and down until your hands hit the cold piece of metal. You grabbed it, and tried to tug on the knot of your ropes with the end of it as hard you could.

Minutes passed with barely any results, and you were about to give up when you felt the grip the ropes had on your arms loosen. Your soul rose and flew, and you continued to tug until they had slipped off. You pushed yourself up and started to practically throw every restraint off, cradling yourself once you threw the ropes and the gag far away from you.

The only thing you wanted to do was curl up and cry, but you had already done enough of that the past few days. You had to get out of here, maybe Darby was still alive. Maybe they were still around. Probably not, you thought to yourself. If they were fast, the Mud Dogs were faster. The last time you had tried to run, they had caught you in under a minute. But maybe there were still other people who could help you. You had been drilled countless times about how no other yōkai would like humans as much, but this could be your last chance. If they had made it to Jadetown, who knows when you would be allowed outside again? They did say they had to lay low for a while, you heard them arguing about it.

Shaking off your fears, you crawled into the driver's seat and opened the door, falling face-first into the snow. You stood on your wobbly legs and stumbled to the hood of the truck, where you saw the wide-open doors of the building your captors were in, and a bullet going into your would-be savior's head. Blood and flesh splattered all over the dark wood of the walls, and you suppressed a scream.

You fell backwards into the snow, putting a hand over your mouth and scooting away. You couldn’t find the strength to stand up. You took a glance around the parking lot. There were definitely more than two cars, but who did they belong to? You couldn’t see or hear anyone else in the building. You didn’t think they were dead. You would’ve heard screaming or a gunshot or-

You broke yourself out of your thoughts. Now wasn’t the time to worry about that. You needed to get away. If one of them turned around, your freedom would come to an end. No, you had to get into the woods. At least you could be a little concealed there. Then you could figure out what to do.

With newfound confidence and adrenaline, you made yourself stand up again. You glanced around, and saw the entrance to a hiking trail 30 yards away from you. Trying to be as quiet as possible, you stumbled to the trail, heading into more darkness.

~

The Mud Dogs walked out of the bathroom, having killed the other two yōkai that were in there and washing the blood off of their faces and hands. Leonard smoothed his hair, closing his eyes and taking a breath. It had been a long night. First, the storm. Then Darby came along. He growled at the thought of them, trying to hold himself back from kicking their body. This was all their fault. They had to lay low, and the cat almost ruined everything. He sighed. There was no use hanging up on it.

“Why is the van door open?”

Leonard and Danny snapped up at Mickey’s question, honing in on the parking lot. He was right, it was open. Tiny footsteps led to the side, going off into the forest. Leonard froze. You didn’t.

You did.

When the Mud Dogs ran out and opened the van, you were nowhere to be found. Your restraints were on the floor with a crowbar. Leonard barely bit back his scream of anger. All of the trouble they went through tonight, and now you had run off into the snowy woods without proper clothes and you were going to freeze to death if they didn’t find you on time. Just wonderful.

The three ran after your footsteps into the woods, Leonard ordering Mickey to go right after it had gotten too dark to see the forest floor. Leonard and Danny tramped forwards, pushing branches aside and keeping their ears open for any noises over the snowstorm. Danny groaned internally. Out of all the things to forget back in the Hidden City, why did it have to be the flashlight?

“Dollface! Come back!” Danny shouted, his voice echoing off the trees.

“There’s no use in yelling, Danny. They’re not going to come to us no matter how cold they are.”

“Well, at least I’m trying.” Danny mumbled, feeling his feet numb through his boots, “Maybe Mickey found them…”

“He would’ve yelled for us. Go left, I’ll keep going on ahead. They couldn't have gone far.”

You dragged your numb feet through the deep snow, trying to stay awake. The snow had soaked through your socks, which were worse-for-wear. You tried to keep yourself optimistic in spite of your numb hands and feet and exhausted mind and body. All you needed to do was make it to a road, or a house, or someone who wasn’t a criminal. That was all you…

You fell to your knees, throwing your hands in front of you to stop your nose from hitting the ground. You could barely hold yourself up, your arms shaking from weakness and the cold. Snow and ice whipped at your face, making you somehow sting and feel numb at the same time. Your attempts to push yourself up were in vain, as you fell into the snow the moment you lifted your arms. You could only turn your head to the side to avoid suffocating in the snow, and nothing else. Your thoughts felt foggy and the snow twisted to swirls in your vision. You were so cold. So tired. You just wanted to go home.

~

Danny called out your name, his ears twitching for any sort of answer or noise. Along with his insane worry, he also held anger at you. How could you do this to them? Why didn’t you just stay put?

“Hey, I found them!”

Mickey’s shout rang throughout the woods, and Danny ran towards the sound of his voice. Leonard was already there, kneeling towards your unconscious body and hoisting you off of the ground, feeling your pulse.

“Are they alive?” Danny asked, feeling his heart sink to his stomach.

“Yeah, they are, but they’re freezing. Let’s get them by that heater.”

They sped off towards the rest stop, Leonard carrying you in his arms. They reached the indoors, Mickey closing the doors behind them after he had retrieved a few lengths of rope from the van. Leonard pulled a chair in front of the heater on the left side of the room, setting you down in it. Mickey tied your arms and legs to the chair’s own limbs, making sure to tighten them to the point where you were sure to have bruises on your skin if you struggled.

Leonard cast off his jacket and threw it over you, making sure that your practically frozen fingers and feet still faced the heater. As mad as he was at you, he wouldn’t go so far as to cause body parts to fall off. He sank into a chair, leaning back and closing his eyes. It had been a long night. They just needed to sit for a while.

Danny clenched his hands around his chair, his sharp nails digging into the wood. They needed to keep you on a tighter leash. Look what you did the moment they took their eyes off of you. It was all the cat's fault. You had already gotten worked up, all antsy inside the van. Their little intervention didn’t do you any favors. Danny steeled himself. They learned something from this. You were going to learn something from this. It had been about a month since they had taken you in, and you still didn’t realize how much they cared for you. He gripped the seat in anger again. Ungrateful brat.

Mickey was grabbing random objects on the other side of the room to electrocute until they were either crispy or ash, the smell of burning filling the room. He threw his debris to the side before continuing on something else. Leonard turned his head towards his teal cohort. “Mickey! Stop that!”

Mickey gave him a death stare, but ceased his violence towards inanimate objects. He slithered over to a chair and crossed his arms, like a kid who was forced to go to their siblings piano recital.

Leonard rubbed his face with his hands. They still needed to take care of you, even if you had run off. What was the point in saving you if they didn’t take care of you afterwards? And besides, the last thing they needed was for you to get sick. Danny was the only one who really knew how to care of a sick person, and he would be fuming at you for a few days, at the very least.

He walked to the counter, taking a TV dinner and shoving it into the microwave. Once it was done, he took it out and walked over to you, pulling up a chair and sitting across from you. He grabbed your shoulder and shook you until your bleary eyes opened to a sliver.

The light was blinding after being stuck in a dark van for so long. You closed them again, but Leonard shook you again.

“Wake up,” He said.

Your entire body felt hot and cold at the same time, truly punctuating your discomfort. You were shivering and your head hurt something awful. Leonard poked a spoon against your lips. “Eat.”

You had refused to eat early in your captivity. It didn’t go well. The thought of having food shoved down your throat made you want to gag, so you opened your mouth and ate the food you were offered. You had to admit, it made you hurt a little less, having something in your stomach. Even if it was a crappy frozen dinner.

Leonard tossed out the plastic container, walked into the bathroom, and closed the door. You could vaguely hear the sound of a sink inside.

Just as you were about to try to sleep off the pain, Danny stood up. You watched him jerk his head towards the bathroom at Mickey, and the eel got up and went in. Danny walked towards you with a purpose in his steps and eyes, and he didn’t stop until he was right in front of you.

“How could you?” He almost whispered, the rage in his eyes apparent. “After everything we’ve done for you, how well we treat you, you still run from us?” He said, his voice raising, “What, do you think we’re not good enough, huh?”

Danny clenched his fists and narrowed his eyes at you. “You selfish, ungrateful brat. We take such good care of you, and you just spit that goodwill back in our face.” He leaned forwards and grabbed your face, his nails digging into your cheeks. “Never do this again. Even think about it, and I’ll show you just how bad I can be.”

You started to sniffle, which turned into full-on sobbing in a matter of moments. Your cries filled Danny with even more rage. How could you be the one crying? He hadn’t even done anything that was worth spilling tears over. He gritted his teeth as his mind went blind with rage. He’d give you something to cry about.

He raised his hand, and brought it down upon your cheek.

Danny took a step back from you as your sobbing stopped for a second, and came back in full force, a bright handprint now on your cheek. A wave of guilt flashed over him, but he turned away from you so he didn’t have to look at your trembling. You deserved it, he told himself over and over.

Leonard and Mickey walk back into the room a moment later, talking in hushed voices. When he hears your crying, Leonard halts and stares at you and the blooming bruise on your cheek. His eyes widen, and Mickey looks back and forth between everyone before grinning.

“Looks like Dan got to them first,” He said, and strolled back to his seat. Leonard turned his gaze on Danny’s back with clenched fists and a twitching eye. “What were you thinking?!” He snaps, “They’re already all cold and roughed up, what if you broke them?!”

Danny scoffs, his gaze focused on the wall and all the guilt seeming to wash away from him. “Oh, please. They’re not made of glass. They deserved it.”

Leonard took a deep breath. “We’ve all had a long night. Don’t make it even longer.”

Danny didn’t respond. Leonard resisted the urge to yell at him. As much as he wanted to, he had to make sure that Danny didn’t do lasting damage. He grabbed an ice pack from the freezer and approached you, pulling up a chair.

He held your chin up with one hand and held the ice pack up to your bruising cheek with the other. By then, your sobbing had turned to quiet hiccups and sniffles, and you were merely shivering instead of shaking like a leaf. Leonard didn’t show it, but concern rose in his chest. You ran, and that deserved consequences, but you were only a human. A tiny human, at that, weak and fragile. He had heard the stories. Humans could die if they went to bed wrong. Unfortunately, his cohorts didn’t know that, if he wasn’t there to stop them, they would’ve already broken you, and then what?

He sighed and looked at you. You diverted your gaze away from him as much as you could with his grip on your face. “Hey,” He almost whispered, “I’ll tell Danny to leave you alone, but if you run again, I might not be able to stop him.”

You finally faced him as he let go of your chin, and nodded. Your cheek flared in pain as it rubbed against the ice pack.

~

The Mud Dogs loaded into their van again, the approaching dawn apparent. Fresh ropes bound your arms and legs, although the gag wasn’t as tight as to not hurt your cheek. Mickey sat next to you, leaning against the wall. When you looked into the gloomy skies of the yōkai world through your glimpses of the windshield, you imagined the sun shining on your face

~

Taglist: @yanteetle @oleander-nin

[lookismstuff]

Lookism Webtoon/Manhwa is Still About Lookism, After All

Added some new analysis. SPOILERS ALERT.

I read many complaints that Lookism webtoon/manhwa isn't about lookism anymore (some even call it "fightism" or "gangism"). I respectfully beg to disagree, since I think the manhwa/webtoon is still a story about lookism, despite the genre shift. I recently binge-read the webtoon/manhwa for about three weeks, so maybe that's why I can spot the threads of the lookism theme across the story.

If you want to read about the current arcs, please read point B right away.

A. Lookism in its basic definition (early arcs)

Spotlight Characters

1.Daniel

Lookism is "societal discrimination based on looks or perceived notion of beauty". As we all know, this concept can easily be applied to the case of Daniel (Hyungseok). With his second body, Daniel could access the things he previously couldn't even dream of: becoming a model, a singer, even a trainee, finding friends, crushes, etc.

2. Crystal, Duke, Aru,Jasmine, Yui and Zoe

Crystal (Soojung)'s smaller body and Duke (Deokhwa) experienced discrimination based on their looks. Others used their looks or appearance to manipulate others, like Aru (the singer of PTJ Company), or Jasmine (Youngmi), the girl who framed Vasco for theft. Yui and Zoe (Haneul) had to "sell" more than looks as streamers (they had to dress and act provocatively even though they're minors).

3. Vasco and Burn Knuckles

People like Vasco and the rest of the Burn Knuckles suffer from being stigmatized as coarse criminals simply because of their looks, tattoos and built, when actually they're really kind people.

4. The Stalker

The stalker ended up getting the attention she craved after putting on some makeup, making her look pretty even though she's a hideous criminal inside and outside.

So the school/trainee/daily life chapters of Lookism are very straightforward about what lookism is and about its impacts. Maybe that's why some readers think that the lookism theme stops there. But actually the theme stays even after the genre shifts to scifi/thriller/action.

B. Lookism and Its Further Consequences (later arcs)

Ever since the genre shifted, the manhwa/webtoon expanded its notion of lookism into further observation on its consequences.

Let's see.

1.Juvenile Prison and Jiho's Last Moment Arcs

Jiho

In his desperation, Jiho sought for societal acceptance through a series of crimes. He kept making the wrong choices just because he felt victimized and alienated (from lookism reasons). He ended up in a vicious mentality as a tragic, suicidal murderer.

2. Hostel Arc

Spotlight Characters

Eli

Eli (Jang Hyun)'s studies hairdressing, benefits from his gentle looks and mannerisms. So people previously always excluded him from the list of J (Jaewon) High gangsters (unlike Vasco, Zack (Jinsung), Logan (Taesung), Burn Knuckles members) before the God Dog crew came to find him. Had he dressed, talked, and looked like a gang member, many people would've distanced themselves from him from the get go.

Olly

On the other hand, Olly (Ochun / Ohchun), who at times acted and looked unhinged, started out as a sheltered kid who was starving for attention and kindness. People were scared of him but he didn't start out that way, and he made himself scary, ironically, to gain some footing in the world that Eli lived in and later abandoned.

In Eli and Olly's case, the former benefited from lookism while the latter was disadvantaged by it, that until their respective backgrounds were revealed people never knew that they were biased towards these two.

Sally and Warren

Sally (Serim) is perceived as a rich princess just because of her looks and her rumored wealth, but is actually a very lonely child who lives alone in a shabby place. Warren (Wonseok) is rumored and regarded as a scary school thug but is actually a brave and protective orphan. The two characters suffer from prejudices that are rooted in lookism.

3. Fourth, Third and Second Affiliate Arcs

Spotlight Characters

Vivi and Mitsuki

In the Third and Second Affiliate of Workers (Ilhae) arcs, people like Vivi and Mitsuki benefit from their wealth and beauty that they (almost) got away with horrible crimes that range from illicit drug use, manufacture, and trade, multiple counts of sexual assaults, human trafficking, and abduction. In a lookism-based society, the rich and privileged could benefit more when they are also beautiful.

Jake (and Daniel)

During the Third Affiliate Arc, Jake (Gimyung) was allowed to enter Vivi's nightclub and work there mainly because he doesn't look like a minor. While Daniel wasn't allowed, until he shows the Workers pin that Gun (Jonggun) gave him. They're both minors but only Daniel was suspected, because of how different they look, showing a bias caused by lookism.

Ms. Raccoon and Arin

In the Fourth Affiliate arc, an innocent-looking streamer nicknamed as Ms Raccoon lured Hostel's Amy and Natalie (Yejin and Eunbi) and later bound them under a slave contract in a secluded location. The two young girls would not be easily deceived had the streamer seemed hostile.

Daniel also met Arin, a beautiful but poor newbie streamer, who was later drugged and almost sexually assaulted by Vivi's cohorts. He regretted introducing Kwitch streaming to her. Her case is an example that lookism can turn beauty into harm when the beautiful is socially disadvantaged.

Johan and Vin

Johan (Yohan) and Vin (Hobin) live with a disability (visual impairment). In Johan's case he always covers his impaired eye with his hair, while Vin hides his polycoria behind super dark sunglasses. But Johan's disability was discovered by Zack in the Fourth Affiliate arc, and Vin was forced to show his during the Second Affiliate arc. In both ocassions, both characters were furious that their disability was revealed.

Before the Lookism arc, Vin even told Mary (Miru) that his dream of becoming a rapper had ended since people had seen his disability implying that what society wants is a perfect celebrity.

Although both Johan and Vin don't fully lose their self-confidence from their disabilities (and Vin spitefully targeted Duke because of his physique), we can't ignore the fact that both characters choose to conceal their disability and consider it as their blemish. This behavior is also a facet of lookism.

Channing and Jace

Channing (Changwon) of Ansan Public hurt and shamed his opponents by slashing them with tattoo pens. The purpose of this torture isn't simply to inflict pain but also to bring shame, since tattoos are still stigmatized in many aspects and in many places, including in Korea. So when Jace was slashed and branded with Ansan Public's name and address and in uneven colors, Vasco was livid. It was more than just his own trauma resurfacing, you know. Jace already got his own tattoos, but being branded and stripped like that was humiliating.

4. The Hunt for Big Deal, United Major Crews, Holiday 1, Holiday 2 Arcs

Spotlight Characters

D.G., Gun and Goo

D.G. (Diego/Dagyeom/James Lee/Lee Jihoon). Behind that beautiful façade is a guy who got away with murder and erased everything about his past.

Compare his case with Gun's and Goo (Joongoo)'s, who exude dangerous gangster-ish vibes (especially Gun).

Even though all three had killed people before, D.G. is viewed as angelic, while Gun and Goo are portrayed as demonic. Their case is a clear example of lookism-based discrimination.

CEO Charles Choi and CEO Steve Hong

Charles Choi (Dongsoo), who beautified D.G. (through plastic surgery? a second body?), knew all too well of the power of beauty. It's his true and tested method: he used his own daughter Crystal (Soojung)'s disarming beauty in the same way.

Charles himself benefits from lookism. Out of all the fighters from Gen 0, Charles is the only one whose face and mannerisms look like a legit businessman. So he passes as one, even though he was Elite, a killer like the rest of those fighters.

On the other hand, Steve Hong (Hong Kyungyeong), Charles's business rival, is brash and often poorly dressed, so the public probably would probably lend more support towards Charles if their enmity was exposed.

Though both men are terrible fathers, Steve clearly abandons Jay and would probably be more criticized by the public than Charles, who fakes his affection for Crystal and face it he's a good looking old man. Charles is better at lookism-based P.R.

Luah

Small, slender, and pretty, Luah (Rua) is underestimated and often feels unsafe when she's out alone in public. In fact, she's a thorough investigator under the Big Deal crew, enough for Jake and the others to acknowledge her capabilities.

Daniel (Again)

After being underestimated for years by his relatives especially his cousins Dylan (Hyungjoon) and David (Hyunggoo) and their families, Daniel only gains full acceptance and recognition after he slimmed down, became more confident, and grew taller. This situation shows how lookism is a social wrong because it can break families apart.

5. Lookism Arc

Spotlight Characters

Hangyeol (The Grimm Plastic Surgery Clinic)

Hangyeol of Workers runs a legit plastic surgery clinic. Without the high demand for plastic surgery, it would've been difficult for him to hide the dubious malpractice, asylum and shelter operations. And why is there such a rush for plastic surgeries? The answer is lookism.

Hangyeol himself takes advantage of his looks and demeanor. Because of these, his patients takes it for granted that he's a pro through and through when in fact he's insane (and is a minor).

Mary

Mary has to hide her background as a judoka because of her past body size and another undisclosed trauma. She and Vin had to leave their hometown Cheonliang (Chunryang) and settled in Seoul, and could only recently embraced their Cheonliang identity again after Vin's escape from Mitsuki's illegal fight club.

Their shared trauma of body shaming and disability makes it hard for them to believe in other people, an example of how lookism works in alienation.

6. Jake Kim, James Lee & First Generation King Arcs

Spotlight Characters:

Sinu, Taesoo, and Seokdu

Taesoo, who is Hudson (Hyunseong)'s teacher from Ansan, is traumatized by his disability. His bitterness and shame drove him to lose his belief in himself, and to retreat from society.

Meanwhile Sinu (Shinwoo) and Seokdu are never discriminated only because they put up a "tough front" that seem to have "surpassed" their respective disability (in what is probably an example of how their society treats them as an 'inspiration porn', a term coined by Australian disability activist Stella Young).

7. First Affiliate Arc (Current Arc)

Spotlight Characters

Logan (and Daniel)

Logan is back at his worst in the First Affiliate arc when he taunted Daniel with the past crude name "Pikachu". Daniel too had to resort to call Logan "Pig" even though he knows that it's a name given by bullies including Logan himself.

This situation is an example of how lookism in society makes it difficult for people to escape from labels, no matter how far they've come.

Side Notes

Not exactly lookism here but ageism: the dismissive attitude by younger characters towards the aging members of Gen 0. Well of course physically they're different from when they were young but they're still formidable people! But they themselves despise the younger generation, so the hatred is mutual.

Maybe Samuel (Seongeun)'s bitter rivalry with Jake about Big Deal etc. counts as lookism. Jake benefits from his Gapryong looks, and is the more acknowledged one in the criminal underworld, for better or worse. I'm not saying that Jake only has his looks, of course he's talented and tough, but Samuel had nothing (the running joke between the creators and the fandom is how he's cool because his father was an AC repairman). I wonder if that was why Samuel tried hard to make his physique more formidable before meeting Jake again (but Samuel is literally a bag of insecurities and maybe not just about his looks or heritage alone so who knows).

In the Future...

I think the lookism consequences would keep appearing in the manhwa/webtoon. I mean there's the problem of Daniel's, Crystal's and who knows who else's alternate bodies. Daniel's alternate body was probably created as a perfect human weapon, while Crystal's was to observe people (and Daniel?). I have this feeling in my gut that the alternate bodies were products of someone's (Charles's? Someone else's?) morbid dissatisfaction about human imperfections.

There goes my rant about the threads of the lookism theme across the Lookism manhwa/webtoon. I'm sorry that this turns out to be very long.

[supercalifragipopculturevomit]

FINALLY caught up on TV shows I follow and watched new ones I’ve been meaning to check out…

Only Murders in the Building, season 4 (Hulu) – a perfect blend of crime, mystery, comedy, and heart: this is a certified comfort show. I don’t know how it keeps managing to expand the universe of such a niche podcast, but four seasons in, it’s still at it. And it doesn’t feel like a hasty expansion—something created out of popularity and demand—because all this time it’s actually been laying the ground for a much bigger arc. Steve Martin and Martin Short together are comedic gold—that’s a given; but Meryl Streep and Martin Short?? That’s an on-screen and off-screen pairing I didn’t know I needed.

Disclaimer* (Apple TV+) – this one’s difficult to discuss without spoilers but all you really need to know is it’s a psychological thriller written and directed by Alfonso Cuarón with Cate Blanchett at the helm. Parts of it feel clunky, with decisions made to force a narrative and serve a specific number of episodes, but if you can suspend your disbelief for that, it’s a meaty watch—heavy and triggering but also has you looking inwards and questioning your own prejudices. There is a gut punch of a line in the finale that will haunt you for the rest of your days, but it is worth watching the entire miniseries for.

Nobody Wants This, season 1 (Netflix) – here’s where they’re wrong: EVERYBODY WANTS THIS… everyone who was a teenager around 2005, anyway. My teen idol, Veronica Mars, with my teen crush, Seth Cohen, in a television rom-com?? 17-year-old me would have imploded from sheer joy and jealousy. Apparently, this isn’t the first time Kristen Bell and Adam Brody have played romantic partners, but since I didn’t reach the fifth season of House of Lies, this is the first time I’m seeing them together. And they are as adorable and as sexy together as you would expect them to be. The biggest surprise was how sharp the script is—this breed of rom-com is rare in this day and age.

The Franchise, season 1 (HBO Max) – this is a satirical comedy that pulls the curtain on the crazy shit a film crew—if they’re as unlucky as the Tecto team—has to put up with in the making of a superhero franchise. Would I have watched this if Daniel Brühl wasn’t in it? Maybe not. But I wouldn’t keep watching it if it wasn’t worthwhile. Created by the people behind Veep and Succession, it’s wickedly funny in a blink-and-you-miss-it kind of way. So, yeah, best watched with subtitles on.

Slow Horses, season 4 (Apple TV+) – in some ways this is your typical British spy thriller that has nail-biting action, an unexpected mole, and a tragic death but, in many ways, it isn’t. The spies are losers who aren’t easy to root for, but against all odds, they somehow always save the day. It’s ridiculous and brilliant and hilarious and I love it so much. On its fourth season, it proves that it still has much to offer—might be its strongest yet—with little seeds they’ve planted early on finally bearing fruit. Easily the most underrated show on this list.

The Day of the Jackal, season 1 (Peacock) – you know that episode in The Office (US) where they’re debating if Hilary Swank is hot or not? I had a similar one in my mind the entire time watching this—but with Eddie Redmayne on stand. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve always liked him, I think he’s a phenomenal actor, but the most I would have ever described him was cute. This role had me seeing him in a whole new light though—not too different from when Benedict Cumberbatch took on the role of Sherlock. I don’t know if they’ve cast the new 007 yet but this could be the audition tape that puts him in the running. He’s SO GOOD that it’s easy to forget you're rooting for the villain. Redmayne’s Jackal has the steely precision of Jason Bourne, the disguises of Ethan Hunt minus the camp, and the sharp fashion and globetrotting lifestyle of a young and contemporary James Bond—what’s not to like? And, fuck yes, he’s hot.

[blacklegsanjiii]

i'm not really a sanji girlie but i've been watching skypeia so. what if skypeian sanji au (idk how tjis would work but maybe he escapes germa thru one of the other entrances to skypeia that are referenced? or he has skypeian heritage on his mom's side. idk i just had the thought of sanji with wings and antennae and my brain went brr)

There is a Skypiean!Sanji here. However this has been something I've wanted to expand upon, especially in the context of loved!Sanji. So here we go!

Skypeian!Sanji whose mother and father rule a kingdom in the North Blue and is a prince with basically no chance at the throne as he's the fourth born child and the third born son, but he has wings and antennae like his siblings and mother. His mother is Skypeian and teaching them the language as they prepare to head for the East Blue. Sanji knows what they are, there is no hiding it after the failures of their forefathers.

They're attacked as they cross over and they're doing their best to defend themselves when Sanji is grabbed from his hiding spot, the guards slaughtered in front of him as he is dragged out of a window and his mouth covered, muffling whatever screams came out of his mouth as he is ripped from his family and home. Sanji is held prisoner for months and he doesn't know if his family is going to come for him or if he's just dead to them.

The people holding him put him in the helmet and tie his wings down cover them and taunt him for months and there's nothing he can do except cry and remember the stories his mother told him of the All Blue and Skypiea and all of the fun he had with his siblings and father. He's in there for a long time, so long that he lost count until pirates attack the ship and he's dragged out of his cell he is screaming and crying and the pirate with his braided mustache stomps on his helmet hard enough to open the jaw part.

Then the ship goes down and Sanji wakes up on the rock with the pirate and is staring at him and he stares back as he's given a small bag of food and sent to the other side of the rock. He's waiting for a ship to come get them and hopes it's his family but they don't come. No one does. For months. He's waiting for everyone to come get him. Sanji goes and finds the man, lacking a leg with a bag of treasure and not food, Sanji is so frustrated and he cries again as the man watches him rip the jacket off his body and move a knife to one of his wings. Zeff stops him and pulls him close and tells him not to be dumb, those are more precious than his leg. Sanji loses his knife to the man.

When they are saved Zeff makes sure no one comments on the small boys wings, they work on getting the helmet off and everyone is surprised at the antennae sticking out of his matted blond hair and the swirly eyebrow that everyone realizes he's not supposed to be there. Zeff keeps the boy with him and refuses to let him be alone really. The kid doesn't talk about his family as what is canon continues, the only difference is Sanji covers his antennae. Even after he joins the crew. Everyone finds out over time though. Nami and Luffy and chopper find out on Drum, Robin on Skypiea when she hears the story of one of their girls running off with a prince who looks a lot like their cook. Usopp and Franky during Ennies Lobby/Water Seven. Brook on thriller Bark.

No one brings it up to the cook, lets him bring it up to them, though Luffy will preen his wings because they're so soft when Sanji is shirtless and not hiding them under his shirts and such. Sanji doesn't actually know what to do with how soft everyone is being with him. Zoro finds out on Sabaody when Sanji takes a particularly hard kick to the back and sees blood soaking through and someone shouts about his wings. They don't get to talk until after the time skip. When Sanji decides to forgo his bandana and coat in favor of his extra bits being free and not cramped.

Everyone always asks him why he didn't stay in Skypiea and he's like 'i know literally no one there, I have no idea who my family is there, they hated what my mother did' and just leaves it at that and things still go as Canon. Until Zou where there's a singular member of the Royal Family of Germa, not in anything from the 66, just her royal outfit as she tries to calm down the Strawhats, that Sanji is fine. She is doing well in taking their anger and the fact they keep saying she kidnapped the cook when she didn't. Her brothers did.

So the rescue team goes with Pink and meets Sanji's family who are also dealing with the Big Mom pirates. Pink unpins her antennae as they arrive and are let into the castle and led to a main sitting room where Sanji is being preened by an older woman and a man is laughing as three other Sanji's with different hair keep talking about the beast pirates and how Big Mom is also after Sanji after Fishman Island and as a swipe to them. Luffy yells and snaps to Sanji who catches him and curses him.

"This is him? How charming!" The woman coos as she pats Luffy's cheek.

"Yes, this is my captain, Luffy." Sanji sighs.

"You stole my cook!" Luffy snaps at her.

"Oh dear, he's possessive isn't he?" She laughs lightly. "My apologies, our children were so excited to be reunited they didn't seem to take into account what repercussions there could be." She apologizes.

"And who might you all be?" Nami asks with a frown.

"My apologies, I am King Judge, this is my wife Queen Sora's and our children. Princess Reiju, our oldest and her younger brothers, the quadruplets and princes: Ichiji, Niji, Sanji whom you already know, and Yonji who is our youngest." The older man smiles kindly.

"You're a prince?!" Nami, Brook, and Chopper yell at him.

"I haven't been since I was eight?" Sanji asks with a look to his mother.

"Oh, you still are. Besides we seem to have a common enemy in Big Mom." Sora smiles.

"So you're the Skypiean who ran away?" Chopper asks her as they're led to a dining room to eat and Judge talks to Nami about things they can provide short term aid in the fight, not men but equipment. As they're prepping to leave a few days later they're staring Big Mom attacks and the crew and Germa begin fighting as Jinbei shows up.

When they escape and make it to Wano and the crew is gathered Luffy and Chopper tells everyone. The story of Vinsmoke Sora running with a Sea Dweller, their family, the lost prince who became a pirate. Sanji shrugs as Jinbei laughs heartily as that story, at least the first half, had been around for a long time. Over twenty five years at least.

"Yeah, that's about when my parents met. Hence the appearance." Sanji shrugs.

"Amazing." Jinbei laughs harder.

[allovesthings]

You know how in Robin Year One, after the Two Face incident and being taken Robin away from him, Dick headed out in the streets to crime bust on his terms which caught the attention of an underground school for training assassins?

Well what if instead of that school….it was the Court of Owls and the man who instead was approaches Dick to offer him enhanced training to react justice on Two Face…was William Cobb, not in Talon suit?

Hi 💜

So I went and reread the last two issues of Robin Year one and while out-of-universe, the court of Owl didn't exist at that time, in-universe, both Dick and Bruce got so lucky nothing like that happened.

Would Dick have gone with him if Cobb tried to gain his trust ? Because the impression I got was that he followed Strike and the revenge school of assassins because he was suspicious and other kids were involved, One guy trying to get him to come with him might have done the opposite and made him run in the other direction.

1) if he does and manage to escape, then Dick might be in a situation where he is on the run from the Court, completely sad because Bruce fired him and not sure if he should go back here with Two-face out and about also at the same time. That's a lot for a 10 to 12 years old. In that scenario, I think maybe Dick goes home to Bruce sooner because he realize he is way over his head sooner.

What's interesting about that is that with the kidnapping attempt, the Court of Owl is on Bruce's radar (again) way way way sooner than usual and Dick has a bigger target on his back now that they know about the Court of Owl.

2) The second scenario is Dick decides to go because he is suspicious like Strike and accidentally on purpose infiltrates the Court which is so fun too considering we know Brainwashing would be coming for him so the question becomes can he stay on that idea of infiltration through that ? At 10 to 12 ? That sounds like such a fun concept (although a bit horrifying considering he is 10 to 13). Can he find a way to contact Bruce and get that information out ? I have a feeling if he did that, Bruce might have a heart-attack and just decide to rescue him regardless of Dick's choice to infiltrate ?

3) The third scenario, which is it's a kidnapping attempt and it's successful, the question becomes: can Dick break free (either by escaping and/or break free of the brainwashing) ? For me yes, is a funner answer but what's interesting is when ? Does he escape the Labyrinth a la Bruce and run back to Wayne manor after being tortured? Does he break free from the Talons after he is turned ?

The second question of the scenario is what is Bruce doing ?

I think a lot of this would depends on Bruce a lot ? In Robin Year one, we don't have Bruce's pov but from Alfred's point of view, Bruce is not looking for Dick when he runs off... Which, it feels a little bit out of character for Bruce I cannot for the life of me be normal about Dick Grayson Wayne.

In my opinion, Bruce was probably investigating Two-Face so intensely because he thought that would lead him to Dick (in my own little headcanon).

So in that scenario we have Bruce getting Two-face and realizing he won't find Dick that way and I'm guessing investigating more which might put him on the Court of Owl's track so now we have a race against time on whether Bruce can find Dick before the Court does its thing with the CoO one step ahead. That's so interesting too ? It would be a bit of a thriller honestly, that would be so fun.

4) the fourth scenario which is Bruce wasn't actually looking for Dick at all, we might get to see Talon!Dick goes after Bruce later on (if I was a secret society who had a talon that was knowledgeable on Batman and with who batman has an emotional attachment, I would definitely send him after Batman) and him going after Bruce and seeing what Batman does as a superhero might be the trigger to debrainwash him.

I had so much fun with that ask, I'm so sorry for writing a bit of a novel !! But this AU is so good !!

Thank you so much 💜

[ghostflowerdreams]

Audio Drama Recommendations, Pt. II

For part one, click here. I went on another audio drama binge and I found some that were pretty fun to listen to. I usually tend to go after the ones that are completed because the longer the wait, the more likely I will forget the details, but this time I just went for anything that caught my attention. This also isn’t in any particular order.

The Magnus Archives – is a horror fiction anthology podcast written by Jonathan Sims, directed by Alexander J. Newall, and distributed by Rusty Quill.

The new Head Archivist of the Magnus Institute, Jonathan Sims, attempts to bring a seemingly neglected collection of people’s testimonials of their encounters with the supernatural up to date, converting them to audio and supplementing them with follow-up work from his small but dedicated team. [COMPLETED]

It has five seasons, each 40 episodes long, as well as additional content such as Q&As, non-canon fan-submitted statements and one-off episodes that tie in with Rusty Quill's other podcasts.

It does start out slow and maybe at some point you’ll be wondering where is this going and what does some of these episodes have to do with the overall story, but it does all eventually connect. Your patience will pay off because once the build-up is done it picks up and things get really interesting!

Unwell – is a horror podcast starring Clarisa Cherie Rios and produced by Hartlife NFP.

The story follows Lillian Harper who has returned home to Mt. Absalom, Ohio to care for her estranged mother Dorothy after an injury. Living in the town's boarding house which has been run by her family for generations, she discovers conspiracies, ghosts, and a new family in the house's strange assortment of residents. [ONGOING]

This audio drama has five seasons which runs for 12 episodes. It currently has 54 episodes in total and each one is about 20-30 minutes long. New episodes are released fortnightly (biweekly) on Wednesdays. They take a mid-season break between episodes 6 and 7.

Bridgewater – is a supernatural thriller audio drama produced by Grim & Mild and by iHeartRadio, created by Aaron Mahnke and written/directed by Lauren Shippen.

Folklore professor Jeremy Bradshaw is pulled into the mysterious 1980 disappearance of his police officer father, Thomas, by new evidence that threatens to upend decades of certainty. Along the way, he’s helped by some unlikely partners who challenge everything he believes in, and ultimately tries to answer the question: can the past actually be rewritten?

Together with his father’s former partner, retired Detective Anne Becker, Jeremy must chase the clues that will tell him whether his father really did fall victim to a Satanic cult in the Bridgewater Triangle—or something much more dark and unexplainable. [ONGOING]

It has two seasons, the first consist of 10 episodes and the second has 12 episodes. Each one runs about 20-30 minutes long. Season three was put on hold when there was news of a possible television series. However, that fell through and by then everyone was working on other projects. So a season three, well, that’s pretty much up in the air.

It stars Misha Collins (Supernatural), Melissa Ponzio (Teen Wolf), Nathan Fillion (Firefly, The Rookie), Karan Soni (Deadpool), Kristin Bauer (True Blood), Hilarie Burton Morgan (The Walking Dead, One Tree Hill), Wil Wheaton (Star Trek: The Next Generation), Jonathan Joss (The Magnificent Seven, Parks and Rec) and Lori Alan (Spongebob Squarepants, Family Guy).

The Lovecraft Investigations -- is a mystery thriller/horror fiction podcast written and directed by Julian Simpson, based on several works of H.P. Lovecraft. It’s produced by Sweet Talk Productions for BBC Radio 4. It concluded with three seasons and each episode is about 25-30 minutes long. There might be a fourth season in the works, but even if there isn’t the series is considered to be finished.

The first season starts off with an investigation into the disappearance of a young man, Charles Dexter Ward from a locked room in an asylum. [COMPLETED]

It stars Barnaby Kay (Shakespeare in Love), Jana Carpenter (Doctor Who), Nicola Walker (MI-5, Unforgotten), Mark Bazeley (The Queen, The Bourne Ultimatum), Phoebe Fox (Eye in the Sky, The Woman in Black 2: Angel of Death), Steven Mackintosh (Rang De Basanti, Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels), Samuel Barnett (Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency, Penny Dreadful), Alun Armstrong (Sleepy Hollow, The Mummy Returns), Adam Godley (The Great, The Umbrella Academy), and so on.

Midnight Burger – is a monthly sci-fi audio drama about a diner at the end – and somehow the beginning – of the universe.

When Gloria took a waitressing job at Midnight Burger outside of Phoenix, she didn’t realize she was now an employee of a time-traveling, dimension-spanning diner. Every day Midnight Burger appears somewhere new in the cosmos along with its staff: a galactic drifter, a rogue theoretical physicist, a sentient old-timey radio, and some guy named Caspar.

No one knows who built Midnight Burger or how it works, but when it appears there's always someone around who could really use a cup of coffee. Come by any time, we open at six. [ONGOING]

The audio drama currently has three seasons and each episodes averages about 30 minutes to an hour or so.

Rex Rivetter: Private Eye – is a 1950s-style noir detective audio drama written by Greg McAfee, directed by Rhiannon McAfee, and produced in San Diego, CA by Downstairs Entertainment with editing and sound design by Steve Murdock. The Rex Rivetter theme “Nightmare” by the Artie Shaw Orchestra is used with permission of Music Sales Corp.

The year is 1955. Tinsel town. The land of make-believe. It's a time of growth in American prosperity. Especially in Los Angeles. Here, dreams are bought and sold.

But there's a seedier side to the City of Angels, the shadows where pimps and narcotics pushers live, where organized crime stands just around every corner with one hand out, and the other wrapped around a roscoe. It's a city full of fancy dames and slick cons, where bookies know the vig, so you better, too.

Some folks call it noir or pulp fiction. But for a private eye named Rex Rivetter, it's home. [ONGOING]

It has four seasons and each one runs about 20-30 minutes long. Due to the pandemic, it is still unknown if season five will ever come out and so far there hasn’t been any news about it either.

Mansfield Mysteries – is a satirical, cozy murder whodunit written by Amy Henson, directed by Nicholas Hoyt and produced by The QuaranTeam.

It follows the inquisitive, martini-loving socialite Dorinda Mansfield and is set in quiet, affluent Berkshire Bay. So far it only has one season, which contains nine hilarious episodes, each three-chapter story finds Dorinda wrapped up in a new murder. With the help of her devoted daughter, Stacey—as well as the occasional frenemy—Dorinda digs for clues, navigates Berkshire Bay’s elite social circles, and sifts through years’ worth of grudges and motives. In this company town, no one can be trusted, and everyone has something to hide.

Whether at the Labor Day Extravaganza, the Halloween Tennis Club Open, or secret karaoke night, Dorinda sets out to find the real killer before they get away with murder… Just as soon as she orders her martini! [COMPLETED]

If you’re looking for a bite-sized audio drama, this might be for you. It has three seasons (or chapters) and each one only takes three episodes to complete its tales, which is fun, amusing and will keep you entertained while you’re working on something or resting your eyes.

The Call of the Void – is an indie science fiction mystery audio drama created and written by Josie Eli Herman and Michael Alan Herman. It’s produced by Acorn Arts & Entertainment. It contains three seasons of 28 episodes and each one is about 25-30 minutes long with a cast of about 35 actors.

In the bustling streets of New Orleans, a tour guide and a palm-reading outcast team up to unravel the mystery behind cases of sudden insanity besetting the city. [COMPLETED]

Wolf 359 – is a science fiction audio drama created by Gabriel Urbina and produced by Gabriel Urbina and Zach Valenti under Kinda Evil Genius Productions. It consists of four seasons with 61 episodes in total and each one is about 25-40 minutes long.

It is set on board the U.S.S. Hephaestus space station orbiting the star Wolf 359 on a deep space survey mission. The dysfunctional crew deals with daily life-or-death emergencies, while searching for signs of alien life and discovering there might be more to their mission than they thought. [COMPLETED]

[guardian-angle22]

Nobody tagged me in this (I just found it randomly in the book tag), but I feel like TALKING ABOUT BOOKS! and I wanna hear from my friends about their reading. so! Here we are!

Last book I…

BOUGHT:

Cooling the Tropics by Hi'ilei Julia Kawehipuaakahaopulani Hobart. This is a nonfiction book that uses the lens of refrigeration and ice (and its various food forms like frozen drinks/ice cream/etc) to talk about the ways Hawai'i was colonized and native Hawaiians were forced to assimilate. Have not read it yet, but itching to pick it up during this summer season!

BORROWED:

I Keep My Exoskeletons To Myself by Marisa Crane. I have the e-book for this checked out from the library right now. Currently not super far into it, but it's about a world in which "wrongdoers" are given a second shadow (or third, fourth, etc) as punishment and forced to be publicly shamed (and discriminated against). We follow a main character who has lost her wife in childbirth and the baby was given a second shadow immediately. It's written in first person narration as the MC speaking to her dead wife.

WAS GIFTED:

The Last Cuentista by Donna Barba Higuera. My sister gave me this book for Christmas! I read it back in January and it's a fantastic middle grade/YA story set on a spaceship that has left earth right before a comet is about to destroy it. Follows a young girl who wants to be a storyteller for future generations but when she wakes up from stasis on the ship, a cult has taken over and they want to purge humanity of its stories and history.

GAVE/LENT TO SOMEONE:

Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire. A friend of mine was looking for some short reads, so I lent him a stack of various novellas. This is one of my favorites! This is the first book in a series following children who have gone into portal worlds and come back. While they're seeking to find their own specific door back to the world they're meant to be in, they stay at Eleanor West's Home for Wayward Children.

STARTED:

Do What Godmother Says by L.S. Stratton. I started listening to this on audio the other day! Shanice has inherited a spooky painting from her grandmother. As she starts to learn about the Harlem Renaissance painter who made it, she also begins to wonder if maybe the painting is haunted.

FINISHED:

Before the Devil Breaks You by Libba Bray. This is the third book in a series so I won't go into the plot, but it was a solid continuation of the story - I read all 500+ pages in one day! The first book, The Diviners, introduces a group of characters living in 1920's NYC as they're discovering their various supernatural abilities, trying to solve a crime, and save all of humanity from evil.

GAVE 5 STARS:

El Deafo by Cece Bell. This is a middle grade graphic memoir about CeCe's experience of growing up as the only hearing impaired child at her school and in her neighborhood. It was adorably illustrated with all the characters as rabbits. This was definitely written for a younger audience but I think anyone can enjoy and learn from it!

GAVE 2 STARS:

Do Not Become Alarmed by Maile Meloy. This was a book I picked up specifically for a vacation in January so I could read a book set on a cruise ship while on a cruise ship... While it kind of fulfilled that for me, it also surprised me with unnecessary on-page abuse of a child. The "thriller" aspects of this book were not at all interesting. There were also too many POV changes throughout. 2 stars. Do not recommend.

DIDN’T FINISH:

Stiff by Mary Roach. I DNF'd this on audio specifically. I just was not digging the voice of the narrator. I could see myself trying to read this again in physical form at some point in the future.

Tagging any of my friends that I have ever chatted with about books (but no pressure as always!): @alrightbuckaroo @carlos-tk @lemonlyman-dotcom @beautifulhigh @tailoredshirt @heartstringsduet @dotsunflowers @mikibwrites @three-drink-amy @rmd-writes @liminalmemories21 & OPEN TAG to anyone who wants to do this!! TAG ME PLEASE so I can see all the fun books!

[justforbooks]

Karla’s Choice: A John le Carré Novel by Nick Harkaway

John le Carré’s son does him proud in an excellent spy thriller about a Soviet agent that faithfully bridges two of his father’s classic tales

Autumn now seems officially to be John le Carré season, given that this is the fourth year running since the author’s death in 2020 we’ve had a new book by or about him: first came the posthumously published novel Silverview, then an edition of his letters, as well as a memoir by his lover Sue “Suleika” Dawson (The Secret Heart), before last year’s follow-up exposé by his biographer Adam Sisman, The Secret Life of John le Carré, documenting other lovers the espionage writer hadn’t wanted mentioned in his lifetime.

Considering the drift of those books, it’s maybe unsurprising if we’ve lost sight of le Carré’s achievements as a novelist, especially in his early years. His first big hit, The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (1963), which mapped a thwarted romance on to geopolitical intrigue in divided Berlin, accelerated the spy genre’s 20th-century breakaway from jingoistic tub-thumping and gung-ho adventure. By the time of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (1974), an ensemble psychodrama in which the British plot against one another as much as against the Soviets, le Carré’s narrative energy is generated more by gnarly workplace tensions rather than conventional derring-do, which is nonetheless tinglingly present in the book’s shattering finale.

Karla’s Choice, perhaps the most intriguing of the le Carré-related publications to have appeared since his death, puts these achievements front and centre. Set after The Spy Who Came in from the Cold but before Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, it’s a new mission for the spymaster George Smiley, from the pen of le Carré’s son, novelist Nick Harkaway, who makes clear that while this might have been a book he was born to write, it was far from easy. He describes sending the manuscript to the author Joe Hill, Stephen King’s son, “one of the few people on Earth who can claim to understand the scale of my fear around this book”, and the extent to which it’s a family affair supplies an off-page frisson that he doesn’t shy away from in a winning foreword. (Will the book succeed? “We’re about to find out.”)

Set in 1963, it centres on a vanished Hungarian émigré, Bánáti, a Soviet spy whose cover as a London literary agent has been blown after a failed attempt on his life by a Moscow assassin. When the incident rings alarm bells at the Circus – le Carré’s fictionalised��MI6 – it drags Smiley out of retirement (not for the first time, as we know) in an effort to turn Bánáti into a British asset. The attempt – unsurprisingly unsmooth – involves a German double agent previously seen orchestrating a climactic double murder in The Spy Who Came in from the Cold, as well as – no spoiler this, given the title – Karla, the codenamed Russian infiltrator first seen in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.

In true le Carré style, though, Karla only appears here two-thirds of the way in; Harkaway faithfully reproduces his father’s rhythms at the level of sentence and plot alike, with slow-burn tension giving way to agonising jeopardy as cat-and-mouse games explode into crunching hand-to-hand combat or street gun battles. There’s a grippingly cinematic escape scene set in Budapest, as well as a lapel-grabbing speech about “the English mistake” (geopolitical ignorance, essentially). And of course there’s the jargon of the spy trade – “handwriting”, “babysitters”, “product” – and lessons in what it takes to succeed: someone mentions training in a dormitory with “a hundred different kinds of lavatory” (“nothing... more likely to blow your cover than an inability to contend with bathroom facilities you supposedly had been using from birth”). Dry comedy ripples throughout: one Soviet spy, asked his price for defecting, says he wants to star in a film with Peter Sellers.

There’s clearly an attempt to broaden the horizons of the original books – in any case, hardly so exclusively masculine as sometimes portrayed – but Harkaway misses no chance to bring the women of the Circus closer to the spotlight. Much of the action involves Bánáti’s employee, Susanna, another Hungarian, who is his assistant at the literary agency, left to pick up the pieces after his disappearance. As Smiley draws her into the plot to turn her former boss, she learns the ropes of spycraft – a neat way to avoid clunky exposition for the reader coming to le Carré’s world for the first time. Nor is Harkaway quite so reliant on delivering plot twists via Conradian nested monologues involving recollected interrogations or minutes and reports, a staple of the original Smiley novels. (Don’t fret, though, those are still here – expertly negotiated – to say nothing of le Carré’s occasionally reader-foxing tic of referring to the same character by both name and surname, seemingly at random.)

For fans, there’s much to enjoy. The collegiality witnessed here among the Circus crew – Toby Esterhase, Jim Prideaux, Bill Haydon and co – oozes pathos in view of the in-fighting and paranoia to come in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy; ditto the agonising scene in which Smiley tries to make amends for missing a holiday with his wife by surprising her in Vienna, only to be told by the concierge at her hotel that she’s busy with her husband – a sign of further torment ahead. You needn’t be a le Carré nut to enjoy it, though, and while we’re undoubtedly in something of a glut of sequels and reboots, it’s far from unimaginative fan service. A loving tribute to a complicated father (as Harkaway’s dedication seems to acknowledge) as well as an excellent novel in its own right, and only the first of a new series, at least to judge from a broad hint dropped in the end matter. I can’t wait.

Daily inspiration. Discover more photos at Just for Books…?

[crimeronan]

On the topic of How Do You Handle XYZ Comment, I've always wondered how you handle terrible responses on your toh takes. Like I know the toh fandom doesn't lack piss on the poor reading comprehension and they also really enjoy wildly out of touch takes, but I've never seen any comments on your princess luz stuff of that nature. I'm sure they must be there but maybe I'm too early? But anyway, how do you tend to deal with the "acktually shipping luz and Hunter is incest" and the "ur not a real lesbian because putting amity in a poly ship is lesbian erasure" and the "as a white person kinda sus you make the poc woman an empress" kind of responses? Ones that are technically not hate and maybe if you squint could be from people who aren't inherently trying to do bad but just lack the maturity needed to engage with the internet at large?

this ask made me giggle. honestly, i haven't received as much pushback as you might expect! way less pushback than i expected. in the princess AU, i've gotten a LOT more "this is actually too grotesque for me to stomach" comments than "this is problematic" comments, which is fine. horror-thriller isn't for everyone, those comments do not upset me.

i have had a Few run-ins with bad faith people, whom i mostly block. there's one prolific commenter in toh tumblr fandom who would repeatedly write angry essays on my humor meta posts -- essays that were all about how belos is too evil to be sympathetic and/or about how hunter is a soft gentle boy who shouldn't be jokingly referred to as evil. then they'd go "i can't help my active and conscious decision to type a bunch of rude fucking words and then my active and conscious decision to send those rude fucking words because i'm autistic :(((" around the fourth or fifth time this happened, i was fucking done with that nonsense and finally blocked them. shoulda done it after the first comment tbh!! no more autism exceptions.

as for the rest of it, my main management strategy is to simply.... preempt the bad faith comments?

i had a LOT more unpleasant and conflict-filled fandom experiences when i was in the raven cycle fandom. that was my first exposure to "you can't ship multi-gender polycules if anyone involved is gay" and "queerplatonic het relationships are just heteronormativity shipping that you're trying to get away with." having dealt with those takes before, i've found a few different ways to disarm bad faith readers before they get started.

first is to be super open and honest about my interests. i talk about what i find compelling in different relationships All The Damn Time. it's really hard for anyone to accuse me of only wanting hunter to fuck amity if they've seen, like.... anything i've said about hunter and amity.

same with hunter and luz. the only negative reactions i've really gotten to how they're written in the princess AU is like.... two people being squicked by camila thinking they're romantically involved. i REALLY expected more pushback on the touchyfeely bed sharing stuff, but from what i remember, there's never been Any....? not even from people who consider them siblings.

i expected a lot of pushback on how mean hunter and amity are to each other, since it's taken So much farther than the canon. but it turns out that there's a very large overlap between people who like dark horror AUs and people who like hunter and amity murdering each other. (in a fluffy fic i don't think this characterization would fly Nearly as easily.)

i find that being funny really disarms people, too. when you look at any of my toh meta posts that could be controversial, they're basically all funny. people are a lot more willing to listen to what you have to say if you make them laugh, and it's harder for them to get angry at you.

and then the last thing is that i think i'm in sort of a privileged position in toh fandom. i've written a lot of controversial subjects and relationships and characterizations.... but i've also written some WILDLY popular mainstream fic. and people who like the mainstream fic don't really want to beef with me about differing niche opinions, bc there's a level of respect there. which they might not have for a writer they don't like.

but anyway. when things Do happen, i almost always just block and move on. there are so many people here who get what i'm talking about that there's no need for me to try to convert people who don't, you know??

[lazuliquetzal]

Hey speaking of fanfiction/writing asks, I have a weirdly specific writing question: How do you manage to balance comedy and drama so well in your writing? I've read other stories straddling comedy and drama genres, but I often felt that the comedy cheapened the drama, and the drama made the jokes fall flat. But I've never felt that with your writing? In fact, the drama often makes the jokes funnier, and the jokes make the drama more impactful. Maybe it's contrast? How do you do that?

OH BOY DO I HAVE THOUGHTS ABOUT COMEDY ALL THE TIME!

So the idea behind juxtaposing comedy and drama is kinda like putting coffee in your cake--the bitterness draws out the sweetness and makes it stronger. The contrast highlights the presence of the other. But if it's too unbalanced, you either get cheap drama or flat comedy, as you mentioned.

The first thing you need to decide what flavor (genre) you're going for. For example: I consider Dawn of the Fourth to be heavier on the drama than the comedy. I crack some hilarious jokes all throughout DotF, but the moments that I build up to are dramatic moments, even before the mystery kicks in! Ch1 builds up to baby Time screaming about the moon, Ch2 builds up to Wind lying to Time, Ch3 builds up to Wind being seriously suspicious about Sky, etc. The important, plot-moving moments are consistently played straight. So even though I crack a ton of Very Funny jokes, the thrust of the story is actually a mystery-thriller.

In contrast, I would consider Dinked Up to be more comedy than drama. The scenes are all comedic situations. Most of the moments of payoff are jokes. Every scene has a bit of sentiment to it, though (they all circle around Dink's very sincere teenage angst) which is why, when we hit the turning point, it's (hopefully!) not out of place. The drama hits harder in this case because ideally, the reader would have gotten used to the comedic flow, so when we swerve into drama, it's a surprise. Then we get to the climax, which is pushed along with comedy (Time being super nonchalant, Dink tripping and yelling super pathetically, etc). While it is running off of drama, it's a return to the comedy of the earlier scenes. I'm still ending the story with the same tone I established early on.

So basically: while I may be pinballing back and forth between comedy and drama, there's structural consistency going on underneath.

[layce2015]

Supernatural (Dean Winchester x Female!Reader)

The Devil You Know

Masterlist pt 1

Masterlist pt 2

The boys and I followed a doctor through a hospital full of very sick patience, putting on face masks to protect us and them. "Check it out...I look like the king of pop." Dean said, as he gestures to his masked face. Sam and I sigh at this while Dean chuckles. "Too soon?" He asked. "Too soon." Sam replied. "Yeah, c'mon, I'm still not over that. Been listening to Thriller nonstop." I grumbled.

"Don't get me wrong...I'm glad the CDC is here, but what we really need is vaccine." The doctor said, stopping and turning around to look at us. "You got that right." I muttered, looking around at all the sick people sitting in the waiting room. "Well, tell me, have you noticed anything unusual about the strain...Any signs of behavioral change, like aggression, maybe?" Sam asked the doctor. "Excuse me?" She asked, confused.

"Have the flu victims shown any signs of, uh, homicidal tendencies?" Dean asked. The doctor look between us and chuckles. "uh...Symptomatically speaking, we're looking at a relatively mild case of swine flu here. Probably add up to a miserable week off of work, and that's about it." She said. "So nothing unusual." I said, questionable. "Hmm. Day and a half ago, we didn't have a single case. Now we're looking at over 70. The infectious equivalent of a briefcase bomb. So, yeah, I might call that a little unusual." The doctor explained as she signs something for another doctor.

"Day and a half?" Sam said to Dean and I. "That's the same time those statues started crying." I said. "Yep." Sam replied. "I'm sorry. What was that?" The doctor asked. "What was what?" I asked. "Did you just say a bunch of statues started crying?" The doctor asked. 

"What?" Sam asked then laughs. "Why, no. No. W-who would..." He said. "Who would say that, huh? Crazy people." Dean said. "Exactly." Sam said. "Yeah, which we are not." I said. "No." Sam said. The doctor looks between us, confused. "Just...Get us some vaccine." She said, we nodded and she walks off with the other doctor.

Later, we were driving down a dark road in the Impala, while Bobby talks on speakerphone. "Let me guess...another steamin'-hot pile of swine flu." He said. "Yep." Dean replied. "Doesn't make any sense, Bobby. Pestilence touched down here. I'm sure of it." Sam said, certain.

"But why is he dealing them soft serve like swine flu when he's got the croatoan virus up his sleeve? I-I-I don't get it." Dean said. "Doesn't matter what the sick son of a bitch is doing. What matters is this is the fourth town he's hit. That we know of and we're still eating his dust. Did you get anything? We got even a snowball at probable next target?" Bobby asked. "Uh, no pattern we can see." I said and Bobby sighs.

"Okay. Hold on." He said, we then heard a squeaky noise from his wheelchair. "Well, far as I can tell, he's still heading East, So...Head East, I guess." He said, unsure. "East?" The boys and I said in unison. "Bobby, we're in West Nevada. East is practically all there is." Dean said. "Yeah, well, you better get to drivin'." Bobby replied and Sam hangs up the phone and sighs.

"Say..." A voice said and I jump, rearing to the left behind Dean as Crowley was now suddenly sitting in the backseat beside me. "I've got an idea." He said. The tires screech as Dean swerves, slamming on the brakes. Sam tries to stab Crowley with Ruby's knife, but only stabs the seat of the Impala.

"Did you get him?" Dean asked. "He's gone." I replied then we hear a tap on Sam's window. Sam pulls the knife out of the seat and we look to see Crowley was now standing outside the car. "Fancy a fag and a chat?" He asked but then the boys and I get out of the car. "You're upset. We should discuss it. Not here, but..." Crowley said, backing up as Sam and I stalk after him.

"You want to talk? After what you did to us?" Sam asked. "After what I...what I did to you?! I gave you the Colt!" Crowley said, now standing in front of Dean. "Yeah, and you knew it wouldn't work against the devil!" Sam growled. "I never!" Crowley said, sounding offended. "You set us up. We lost people on that suicide run! GOOD people!" I exclaimed, angrily. "Who you take on the ride is your own business!" Crowley said.

Crowley then he turns to look at Dean. "Look, everything is still the same. W-we're all still in this together." He said, grinning. "Sure we are." Sam said and he attempts to stab Crowley again, but Crowley teleports behind him. "Call your dog off, please." Crowley said to Dean. Sam was about to advance on Crowley again but Dean grabs his arms, stopping him. "Give us one good reason." I said. "I can give you Pestilence." Crowley replied.

"What do you know about Pestilence?" Dean asked. "I know how to get him." Crowley said and Dean and I look at him surprised.  That's got your interest, doesn't it?" Crowley asked, noticing our looks. Sam looks between Dean and I. "Are you actually listening to this?" He asked us. "Sam..." I try to say. "Are you friggin' nuts?!" Sam exclaimed. "Shut up for a second, Sam!" Dean growled.

"Shut up, the lot of you! Look...I swear...I thought the Colt would work. It's an honest mistake. It's all part of the learning process. But nothing's changed. I still want the devil dead. Well...one thing's changed. Now the devil knows that I want him dead. Which, by the way, makes me the most buggered son in all of creation." Crowley explained. "Holy crap. We don't care." Dean grumbled and Crowley looks at him, offended. "They burnt down my house!" He said, no one says anything. "THEY ATE MY TAILOR!" He yelled, Dean just rolls his eyes.

"Two months under a rock, like a bloody salamander! Every demon on hell and Earth's got his eyes out for me! And yet...Here I am...Last place I should be...In the road, talking to Sam and Dean Winchester and their little sidekick, (y/n) (l/n), under a freaking SPOTLIGHT!" Crowley yelled, then he gestures to the light above us and it explodes. "So come with me. Please." He pleaded after composing himself.

The boys and I continue staring at him, not moving or say anything. "Do you want the horsemen rings or not? Yes, I know all about that. Shall we?" Crowley asked. The boys and I exchanged, warily, looks.

We let Crowley back in the Impala and he gave us directions to an abandoned house. Crowley sighs as we enter the house. "Here we are. My life on the lam. How the mighty have fallen. Single-pane glass, Used contraception in the fireplace." He said lighting the fire with just a hand gesture.

"The water damage alone." Crowley said, turning around to face us. "My heart's bleeding for you. Now, how do you know about the rings?" I asked. "Well, now...I've been keeping a close eye on you lot." Crowley said. "We got hex bags. We're hidden from demons." I said. "All but one." Crowley said, holding up his index finger then points to himself.

"That night you broke into my house, our first date, my valet hid a tracking device in your car. A magical coin that easily trumps your little bags o' bones. It allows me to hear things, too. And, my, the things I've heard." Crowley said before he chuckles then looks at me and Dean. "I'd have to say the little break-up conversation you two had, left me heartbroken. Oscar worthy." Crowley said and my hands start to shake with anger. "Unless you want to keep your tongue, I'd suggest you shut up." I growled and Crowley gives me an impressed look.

"My, my, my....feisty one." He mutters, teasingly, then he turns to Dean. "No wonder you like her so much." He said and I could see Dean clenching his jaw. "So!" Crowley said, getting our attention. "You want to cram the devil back in the box? Cunning scheme. I want in." He said. "You said you could get us Pestilence." Dean said.

"Well, now...I don't know where Pestilence is...Per Se. But I do know the demon who does. He's what you might call the horsemen's stable boy. He handles their itineraries, their personal needs. He's who you want believe me. He'll tell us where Sneezy's at." Crowley explained. "Well, how do we get him to spill? Rip out his toenails?" I asked. "No. Nuts at his pay grade don't crack. We bring him here, then I sell him." Crowley replied. "Sell him?" Sam asked.

"Please. I've sold sin to saints for centuries. Think I can't close one little demon?" Crowley said. "All right, so where's this demon of yours?" I asked.

Later, the boys and I were loading our guns in a duffel bag when Sam turns to us. "Why are we even listening to him, guys? This is totally insane." Sam said. "I don't disagree." Dean muttered. "Me either." I said then Crowley claps his hands together getting our attention. "One big happy family, are we, then? Fantastic." He said. "You ready to go?" I asked him. "Yes. Yes. I am. Sam, keep the home fires burning." Crowley said, we look at him confused.

"What are you talking about?" I asked. "Sam's not coming." Crowley replied. "And why the hell not?" Sam asked. "Because I don't like you...I don't trust you...And oh, yes. You keep trying to kill me." Crowley said. "There's no damn way. This isn't gonna happen!" Sam growled. "I'm not asking you, am I? 'cause you're not invited. I'm asking them." Crowley said, pointing at Dean and I.

"What's it gonna be?" He asked us. Sam look at us then back at Crowley, who scoffs. "Lady, gentlemen...Enjoy your last few sunsets." He said, turning and walking away. "Wait." Dean said, getting him to stop.

Dean looks to me and I nod. "We'll go." He said, grabbing the duffle back and throwing it over his shoulder. "What can we say? We believe the guy." Dean said to Sam before following him to the door.

Sam then turns to me. "(Y/n)..." He said. I look down, walking to the doorway where I stop and turn back to him. "Sam, we don't have much of a choice. We gotta try something." I said and Sam stares at me not say anything. I sigh and turn to follow Dean and Crowley to the Impala.

Dean and I were using binoculars to watch the Niveus Pharmaceuticals building from the Impala. "Demons." Dean said, lowering his binoculars. "Nah. Human shields. The demons are up top. 12th floor." Crowley said, from the backseat. "All right, then. We'll have to find a way in through the back." I said, lowering my binoculars away. "You (l/n)s and Winchesters make everything so complicated." Crowley said then disappears. "Ah, crap." Dean grumbled. "I don't like that." I said.

Dean and I look through our binoculars again to see Crowley reappearing in the building behind the security guard. He waved to us then slits the guard's throat. "Oh, crap. Crap! Crap!" Dean said as we get out of the car and run to the door of the building.

Once we get there, Dean knocks on the door. "Door's open!" Crowley yelled and we enter the building to see the other guard is dead. Dean and I gesture to Crowley like 'what the hell?'

"What?" Crowley asked, cleaning his knife. "You killed them?" I asked. Crowley sniffs and puts his knife away then steps over the other guards. "We're on a tight schedule. Come on." He said turning us away and walks us to the elevator. I look over my shoulder at the guard. "Now you're squeamish? Please." Crowley said, making me turn away.

Dean and I step inside the elevator but Crowley does not. Instead he just hits the 12th button for us. "Go get 'em, tigers." He said.

The elevator door starts to shut but Dean held out his hand to stop it. "Wh...You're not coming?" Dean asked. "Oh, no. It's not safe up there. There's demons." Crowley replied. "Yeah, we get that." I said, annoyed. "Look, just do what I told you, a-and try to be convincing. It'll work like a charm. Trust me." Crowley said, pushing Dean back so the door could close. Crowley smiles and waves goodbye before the door shuts and the elevator carries us up.

Arriving on the 12th floor, Dean and I kill the demons guarding the office door when suddenly the door opens on it's own. Inside the office, a demon sits at a desk. "Dean Winchester. (Y/n) (l/n). What, no appointment?" He asked us. "Kind of an 11th-hour thing, you know?" Dean replied as we step over the bodies to enter the office. "Well, then, you're just on time." The demon said, closing the door with a gesture. "Have a seat." He said, turning the chairs in front of his desk with a gesture. "How's your brother?" he asked Dean.

Dean doesn't say anything and we take a seat in the chairs, turning them towards the desk. "Well, down to business, then. What can I do for you?" The demon asked, closing his laptop and smiling at us. "Actually, it's about what we can do for you." I said. "Really?" The demon asked.

"Us and Sam dropped two of your jockeys. I think you know that." Dean said. "Yes. I got the memo." The demon replied. "Well, we kept their, uh, secret power rings. Which is why we're here. We heard some folks saying that you wanted them back and you were willing to pay." I said.

The demon leans back in his chair, thinking. "Hmm. Where are they?" He asked. "Not here. But you want them, you'll come with us. Nice and civil. We'll get out of your little batcave here, and we'll discuss a transaction." Dean said.

"Who says I want them?" The demon asked, makng Dean and I look at him confused. "What?" Dean and I asked. "Who...Says...I want them?" He asked. "You know...Folks." I replied, shrugging. The demon smiles at us and we, nervously, smile back.

"See..." The demon said, he clears throat and stood up, walking around his desk to sit on it in front of us. "War and Famine, even if I could cram the rings back on their bony fingers, I doubt it would do much good. They're withered husks right now. Fetal position on the floor. All thanks to you. So I don't want the rings. What I want is retribution. And I'm gonna rip it right out of your assess!" He growls then he throws us out through the office door, crashing on the floor.

"This...is so good." The demon said walking over to Dean and I as we struggle to get up. The demon kicks us each in the stomach, keeping us down, and he chuckles. "...Therapeutic, for sure. You know, guys, I really owe you one, buddies, 'cause I feel..." The demon said as he kicks us again. "So...Much..." He kicks us again. "Better!" And kicks us again. The demon let's out a breath as he fixes his hair.

Dean and I laid on the floor, groaning in pain, until we eventually managed to escape the demon and ran to the elevator. I push the buttons repeatedly as the demon calls out to us. "Guys, where are you going? We're just getting started!"

The elevator door closes and carries us down to the ground floor, it dings and the door opens. We exit the elevator cautiously, seeing now one in sight. Suddenly something hits me on the back of my head and I fell to the ground and slide across the floor along with Dean. "Good meeting, guys. You know, I'm excited." The demon said. Then Crowley approaches from behind, and drops a sack covered in a devil's trap over the demon's head, then bashes his head with a crowbar.

"Evening, Uncle." Crowley said, then starts hitting the demon a couple more times on the head with the crowbar, until the demon drop to the floor. 

Dean and I look at the demon lying unconscious on the floor then up at Crowley, who smiles. "What the hell was that?" Dean asked, helping me up as he stands. "That was perfect." Crowley said. "Perfect? He didn't want the rings. He wanted us." I said. "Imagine the surprise on your faces." Crowley said. "What?" I asked, confused. "Your ignorance and misinformation. I mean, completely authentic. You can't fake that." Crowley said and we glared back at him.

"What? I-it went like clockwork." He said. "Not for us, you son of a bitch!" Dean growled. "That's what you get working with a demon." Crowley said, pointing at him with the crowbar and grinning.

Later, we were driving back towards the abandon house as I was wiping the blood off mine and Dean's faces. Crowley was carving a sigil into the demon's torso. "Hey, hot stuff, watch the upholstery!" Dean said to Crowley. "Up yours, mate. This bit of carving will tie our friend here down. No zapping off, no smoking out. Locked in the meat suit...An important piece of our bargaining strategy. Now, up here, we don't want I-50. Take 93 north." Crowley said.

"What are you talking about?" I asked. "Look, we can't take this guy back to Sam." Crowley said. "Why the hell not?" Dean asked, but Crowley doesn't answer. "Crowley!" I exclaimed. "They got history, all right?" Crowley said. Dean angrily screeches the Impala to a halt. "You want to go anywhere, you start talking. What history?" He asked.

*3rd Person P.O.V*

Back at the abandoned house, Sam was sitting on a bed waiting. He hears The Impala approaching and finds Crowley downstairs. "Where's Dean and (y/n)?" He asked, warily.

"Now...For the record, I'm against this. Negotiating a high-level defection. It's very delicate business." Crowley said. Sam narrows his eyes and tries to go into the other room, but Crowley held up his hand, stopping him. "What are you talking about?" Sam asked. "I begged Dean and (y/n) not to come back. We should be miles away...from you. Your brother replied with a colorful rejoinder about my 'corn chute.'" Crowley said and Sam scoffs.

"So, go ahead. Go ruin our last best hope." Crowley said. Sam stares at him for a moment then slips pass him. "It's only the end of the world." Crowley said as Sam goes into the other room.

*(y/n)'s POV*

Sam enters the room where Dean and I have the demon still hooded and tied to a chair in a devil's trap. "Sam." I said, walking up to him as Dean finishes tightening the rope. "What's going on, guys?" Sam asked, wary. "We need you to stay on mission, okay? Focused." I said, firmly. "I don't understand. What's all this about?" Sam asked. "We're doing this 'cause we trust you." Dean said, walking around the demon to join me. "Trust me to what?" Sam asked.

"Sam?" the demon said, before Dean or I could say anything. Sam looks at the hooded man, confused, as the demon clears throat. "Sam, is that you?" He asked. Dean removes the hood for Sam to see. "Brady?" Sam muttered, surprise, and Brady chuckles. "Brady hasn't been Brady in years. Not since, oh...middle of our sophomore year?" He said and Sam's eyes widen.

"What?" He asked. "That's right." Brady said. Sam glances at me and Dean then, quickly, back to Brady. "You had a devil on your shoulder even back then. All right, now, let it all sink in." Brady said. "You son of a bitch." Sam whispered. "You son of a bitch!" He yelled, approaching Brady. "YOU INTRODUCED ME TO JESS!" He shouted as Dean and I hold him back. "Ding, ding! I think he's got it!" Brady said.

Sam struggles to push past us to get to Brady. "Damn it, Sam!" Dean growled. "I'm gonna kill you!" Sam growled at Brady as Dean and I push Sam out of the room, while Brady laughs.

Dean shoves Sam into the living room and Sam sighs then turns trying to go back but Dean pushes him back. "HEY! That's enough." Dean said, firmly. "Get out of my way." Sam said, calmly. "No." I said, firmly. Sam grits his teeth as he tries to stay calm. "Get out of my way, guys." He said.

"There is only one way to win, and it ain't by killing that thing in there." Dean said as Crowley walks up. "Well...sounds like you got him nice and fluffed. Thanks so much." Crowley said before he walks off to talk to Brady.

"Listen to me. We need Pestilence to get at the devil, and we need Brady to get to Pestilence." Dean said. "Why? Because Crowley said so? Because we trust him now? Like I trusted Ruby? Or like I trusted Brady back at school?" Sam asked.

"Sam, listen. I get it, you're pissed but you have to trust us when we say we need him. Brady is our only lead to Pestilence, okay?" I said and Sam looks over at me. I walk up to him and place a hand on his shoulder. "This gets us one step closer to taking down Lucifer. And once we find out where Pestilence is, then you can kill him in any way, shape or form you want to." I said and Sam stares at me before he looks down.

*3rd Person POV*

Meanwhile, Crowley brought a chair over to Brady and straddles it. "Look...Do the math yourself. If Lucifer wins, he'll turn this place into his kingdom. When the morningstar cleans house, we all get the mop." Crowley said. "He created us. Why would he destroy us? That makes no sense." Brady said.

"Look at who...at what he is. Then take a look at what we are." Crowley said. "Maybe you should be a little less worried about our necks and be a little more worried about yours." Brady replied. "Has crossed my mind. That's not really the point." Crowley said. "Actually, Crowley, that is the point. No one will know greater torment than you. Lucifer is never gonna let you die. As for me, I know the score. I'm dead, whether I tell you anything or not. So I think I'll die on the winning side, thanks." Brady said. "Good talk. Cheers." Crowley said, getting up.

*(y/n)'s POV*

Dean and I were sitting at the table, having a beer when Crowley comes back in. "Well, how'd it go? He buy your girl scout cookies?" Dean asked. "Not yet." Crowley said then he noticed that Sam was gone. "Where's your moose?" Crowley asked. "He's cooling off." I replied. "All right, then. Get bent." Crowley said. "You going somewhere?" Dean asked. "Well, he won't budge, so now I go stick my neck out." Crowley said.

"What are you gonna do?" I asked, worried. "Exactly the kind of desperate swashbuckle I've been trying to avoid. Now I go kick open a hive of demons. This whole bloody ring business better work." Crowley said and he disappears.

Later, Dean goes into the bathroom to wash his face and I walk up beside him. "Dean...?" I asked and he hums at me. "Be honest...is this the right thing to do?" I asked. Dean sighs then turning off the sink and stands up to look at me. "No, not really. But..." he started to say but then the door shuts behind us. "Sam?" I called out and I go up the door, and grabbed the knob. 

"He's locked us in!" I growled and Dean comes up next to me and tries the door.

*3rd Person POV*

Sam had shut the door and put a chair against the doorknob, preventing Dean and (y/n) from exiting, as they stood and talked in the bathroom. "Sam?" (Y/n) called out as he hears the door knob jiggle. "Come on, Sam! Don't do this!" Dean growled as the two bang on door. Sam ignores them and takes out Ruby's knife. "Sam, come on! Hey! Open the door! Open the door!" Dean and (y/n) shout as Sam leaves the two of them trap and goes to Brady.

"Well, here we go. We doing last words or no?" Brady asked. "Sophomore year, huh?" Sam asked, walking around to stand in front of him. "Brady, here, he was a good kid. Straight arrow. I mean, your best friend, really. Perfect point of access." The demon said. "Thanksgiving." Sam said, questioning.

"Yes, sir. Remember when I came back from break all messed up...Dropped out of pre-med, the drugs, the bitches?" Brady asked and Sam smiles, tightly, as he nods. "That was the new Brady. That was me." He said and Sam glares at him.

"Remember how much time you spent trying to get me back on the right track? You really were a good friend. But ol' yellow eyes didn't send me back to be your friend. No, we could tell we were starting to lose you. You were becoming a mild-mannered, worthless sack of piss. Now, come on. We couldn't have that. You were our favorite. Well, one of our favorites. Azazel also had a soft spot for your friend, (y/n), as well. She was coming along nicely...except for the fact she was always around her Daddy, her weak spot at that point in time." Brady explained, grinning.

Sam breathes in, slowly, and exhales slower, trying so hard to keep himself together. "So he dealt with her father, personally, while I hooked you up with a pure, sweet, innocent piece of tail. And then I toasted her on the ceiling." Brady said as Sam looks down, his hand twitching around the knife as he grips it, tightly.

"That's right...Azazel might have put the hit out on Jessica, but, man, I got to have all the fun!" Brady exclaimed then he laughs. "You know, she thought we were friends, too. Let me right in. She was baking cookies." He taunted and Sam breathes, faster, as his anger starts to take him over.

Brady laughs "She was so surprised...So hurt when I started in on her." Brady said, which set off that spark in Sam. He lunges forward, grabbing Brady by his jacket and holding the knife to his throat.

But Brady just laughs. "Come on! Do it, if it'll make you feel better!" Brady yelled and Sam nicks his throat with the knife. "Do it, Sammy! Do it! Come on! Come on." Brady yelled. Sam glares down at him as he face twitches in anger. Then he let's Brady go and steps back and Brady laughs again. "Ohhhhh." He said, chuckling and sighs. Sam leaves the room walking back to the bathroom.

*(Y/n)'s P.O.V*

Dean paces for a moment while I lean against the sink. "You don't think he'd go through with it, do you?" I asked him, worried. "I don't know what to think anymore." He said then he bangs on the door again. "Hey, hey, hey! All right! Wait! I'm gonna open it." Sam said.

Dean steps back and the door opens, letting us out. "What happened?" I asked. "Nothing." Sam replied. "My ass." Dean growled and we walk back towards the room. "Guys, I'm fine." Sam said. "Yeah? And what about Brady?" I asked and Sam sighs. "Like you guys said...We need him." He said as we reach the room to see Brady is still alive.

"God." a voice said and we jump and turn around to see Crowley, with some blood on him and his suit ripped. "The day I've had." He said, slipping pass us and walking up to Brady. "Good news. You're going to live forever." He said and Brady stares at him. "What did you do?" Brady asked.

"Went over to a demons' nest had a little massacre. Must be losing my touch, though. Let one of the little toads live. Oops. Also might have given said toad the impression that you left your post last night because you and I are wait for it...Lovers in league against Satan." Crowley explained then chuckles and Brady sighs.

"Hello, darling." Crowley said, smiling down at him. "So, now Death is off the table. Now you get to be on the boss's eternal-torment list with little old me." He said. "Oh, no, no, no, no. No." Brady said, shaking his head. "Something else we have in common apart from our torrid passion, of course Craven self-preservation. So, now, why don't you tell me where Pestilence is at?" Crowley asked. Brady open his mouth to say something but stops when we hear howling in the far off distance.

Dean breathes in, sharply, and looks around. "Oh, God, Crowley." Brady said. "Was that a hellhound?" Dean asked Crowley. "I'd say it was." Crowley replied. "Why was that a hellhound?" Dean asked Crowley, who groans and pulls out a coin.

"What's that?" Sam asked. "Remember I was telling you about my crafty little tracking device?" Crowley asked. "Yeah." Sam and I replied. "Demons planted one on me." Crowley said, holding up the coin. "You're saying a hellhound followed you here?" I asked, agitated. "Well, technically, he followed this." Crowley said, waving the coin.

"Get me out of here. I'll tell you anything you want." Brady said. "Shut up." Sam said to him. "Okay, well, then we should go." Dean said. "Sorry, gang. No one knows more about the hounds than I. You're long past the point of go." Crowley said and he tosses the coin to Dean, who catches it.

When we look up Crowley was gone. "Damn it." Dean growled. "I told you!" Sam exclaimed. "Oh, well, good for you." Dean said, mockingly. "Luckily, we have salt in the kitchen." I said, walking towards the kitchen. "We'll watch Brady." Sam said and Brady scoffs. "Watch me? Get me the hell OUT OF HERE!" He yelled, panicked.

The howling and snarling continued as I spotted the salt on the counter. But before I could reach it, a window shatters as the Hellhounds break through. I run out of the kitchen, shutting the door to try and slow the invisible beast down. Of course the hellhound just burst right through the door and I pick up the shotgun and fire at the hellhound to keep it back. I began backing up towards the room when I shout. "Boys!" Then I heard footsteps and I look over to see Dean coming up besides me with his own shotgun.

He fires in direction I was shooting at as we came back into the room, seeing Sam untying Brady. "Salt?" He asked. Neither Dean or I say anything and just reloaded our shotguns as the hellhound growls. "Damn it, get me out of here!" Brady yelled, fearfully. "Shut up!" The boys and I said in unison. "Great. Just great." Brady grumbled.

I pumped my shotgun about to fire on the hellhound until I hear a voice. "Hey!" Crowley yelled, standing in the living room. "You're back?" I asked as I turn to him. "I'm invested. Currently." Crowley replied then a new hellhound barks. "Stay!" Crowley ordered, looking to his right.

"You can control them?" Dean asked. "Not that one." Crowley said, pointing towards me and Dean. "I brought my own." He said, patting the invisible hellhound beside him. "Mine's bigger. SIC HIM, BOY!" 

The hellhounds bark and growl as they fight each other, breaking everything in sight. Dean scratches the devil trap with his knife as Sam removes the rope around Brady. "Go, go go go!" Dean said and we run outside and to the Impala, where Crowley already was standing on the passenger side.

"I'll wager $1,000 my pup wins." He said, laughing as he gets in the car. I shoved Brady into the backseat and join the two demons there while the boys sat in front. We drive away as the hellhounds continued, viciously, fight each other.

In an alleyway, Brady hands Crowley a piece of paper. "Yeah. I'm sure Pestilence will be there. Thanks." Brady said. "What do you think?" I asked Crowley. "It's good." Crowley replied, handing Dean the piece of paper.

Crowley turns to look back at Brady. "You got no reason to lie, have you? Like I said before, you're in my boat now." He said. "You've screwed me...for eternity." Brady said. "Nah. Won't last that long. Trust me." Crowley said.

Crowley follows Dean and I down the alley past Sam who is standing, staring at Brady. "Where are you going?" Brady asked. I bend down and begin to pour a salt-line behind Sam. "I'm going to do you a favor." Crowley said to Brady, then turn to Sam. "I expect we'll be in touch." He said, walking away.

I was about to reach the end of the alley, but stop to let Crowley pass. The demon smiles at me as he slips on by then disappears. I then close the salt-line. "What is this?" Brady asked.

"All those angels, all those demons, all those sons of bitches...They just don't get it, do they, boys?" I said. "No, they don't, (y/n)." Sam said. "You see, Brady...We're the ones you should be afraid of." Dean said. Brady scoffs as Sam approaches Brady with Ruby's knife.

"I bet this is a real moment for you, big boy. Gonna make you feel all better?" Brady asask.him. "It's a start." Sam said. Brady starts backing up as Sam continues approaching.

"Gonna make up for all the times that we yanked your chain...Yellow eyes, Ruby, me? But it wasn't all our fault, was it? No, no, no, no. You're the one who trusted us. You're the one who let us into your life, let us whisper in your ear over and over and over again. Ever wonder why that is, Sammy? Ever wonder why we were so in your blind spot? Maybe it's because we got the same stuff in our veins and, deep down, you know you're just like us." Brady explained, grinning at Sam.

Brady lunges at Sam, who nicks him with the blade. Sam pushes him back against the wall and Brady pants in pain, turning around to face him. "Maybe you hate us so much because you hate what you see every time you look in the mirror. You ever think of that?!" Brady asked but Sam doesn't say anything and Brady laughs at his silence. "Maybe the only difference between you and a demon...is your hell is right here." Brady said.

Then Sam stabs Brady hard in the stomach until he dies. He takes the knife out and lets Brady's body slump down to the ground. "Interesting theory." Sam mutters and he walks out the alley, past us. Dean and I turn and watch him leave, worried.